A heavy storm which included tornadoes, powerful winds and hail hit the central states of the U.S. on Thursday and early Friday, authorities said.

The tempest killed at least eight people in Arkansas. Among the victims was a 15-year-old girl who died in her bed as a tree fell into her house in Siloam Springs. A 10-year-old boy that was in the same room was hurt in the incident. He was rushed to the nearest hospital and is currently in safe conditions.

"We're not currently certain if it was straight-line winds or a tornado," said Stacy Vaughn of the Siloam Springs communication department. National Weather Service.

The powerful winds wrecked houses in Kansas City and showered regions of Oklahoma with frozen rain. As much as 25 tornadoes hit the central U.S. according to Greg Carbin, a meteorologist in Norman, Okla., The Washington Post reported.

A tornado killed three Arkansas inhabitants – two adults and a child – when it hit their home in Damascus, Van Buren County Sheriff Scott Bradley said.

The storm made two other victims in Conway County, Arkansas, and one in Hensley, south of the capital city of Little Rock in southern Pulaski County.

At least six people suffered light injuries in Van Buren County. Six other were hurt in Conway County and they were all taken to hospital for treatment.

About 350 homes were severely damaged or completely destroyed in Arkansas according to the estimations released by Gov. Mike Beebe.

"We've had our share of stormy weather," Beebe said. "We've had the snows, we've had floods, we've had tornadoes, we've had more floods ... but our people are resilient people. We'll fight through it and we'll get through it."

Beebe added that the number of victims could have been much higher if the storm would have hit during the night.

The storm system is currently heading to Kentucky, meteorologists forecasted.