The tornadoes, which also injured three people and caused widespread damage, reached wind speeds in excess of 100 miles per hour.

The year’s first deadly US tornado struck after dark Thursday, killing two people in a small East Tennessee community as the first of five back-to-back, jet stream-driven winter storms pummeled the eastern United States.

A possible tornado swept through a swath of north-central Tennessee on Thursday night, killing a mother and daughter and injuring at least three other people as it caused severe property damage, officials said.