At least six people were killed in Mississippi on Sunday when severe storms and tornadoes swept through the region.

The victims were from three counties that border Louisiana - Walthall, Lawrence and Jefferson Davis, according to Mississippi Emergency Management Agency director Greg Michel.

Before ravaging Mississippi, the powerful system pounded the northern part of Louisiana with multiple tornadoes and damaging winds, wrecking hundreds of homes and buildings in that part of the state.

The city of Monroe, Louisiana, was hit especially hard, with 200 to 300 homes destroyed when a tornado touched down around noon, the city’s mayor, Jamie Mayo said.