Powerful US storms kill 2, bring threats from critical fire weather to blizzard conditions

Powerful storms have killed two people in Mississippi, torn the roofs off an apartment building and a nursing home in Oklahoma and threatened communities across the nation. Tuesday's large system brought blinding dust storms to the Southwest, blizzards with whiteout conditions to the Midwest and raised fears of wildfires. In New Orleans, high winds forced some changes to Mardi Gras. The city shortened the celebration’s two biggest parades to wrap them up before high winds moved in. The storms are among the first big tests for meteorologists at the National Weather Service after hundreds of forecasters were fired under President Donald Trump.