A tornado with winds of more than 158mph has torn a path of devastation through western Kentucky and southern Indiana as people slept, killing at least 22, smashing dozens of mobile homes and reducing entire blocks of buildings to rubble.

A TORNADO ripped across south-western Indiana and northern Kentucky early yesterday, killing at least 20 people, wrecking homes and knocking out power to thousands, state and county authorities said.

A tornado ripped across parts of two central states early today, killing at least 16 people, wrecking homes and knocking out power to thousands, state and county authorities said.

A tornado ripped across a region on the Indiana and Kentucky border early today, killing at least eight people, wrecking homes and knocking out power to thousands of homes, authorities said.

Chris Nguyen, Los Angeles

Areas of the Sierra Nevada have been hit with the heaviest snowfall in almost 90 years, with steep drifts stranding a passenger train, knocking out the Reno airport and shutting down major highways across the mountains.