Mother is found still cradling her toddler son, 2, after deadly tornadoes ripped through Tennessee killing them both: Floridema Perez and Anthony, along with Arlan Burnham, 10, and father-of two Joseph Dalton are also among six killed by raging storms

A 2-year-old was killed, found in the arms of his already dead mother, in the aftermath of an horrific tornado that also killed their neighbor in the trailer park where they lived in Tennessee.  

A neighbor said that in the following the storm, neighbors set out to find the missing toddler, Anthony Elmer Mendez, who they thought had been thrown from his home in the EF2 storm which brought with it winds of around 125 miles per hour. 

Firefighters eventually found him, being cradled by his mother, Floridema Gabriel Perez, 31, among the rubble. 

Their neighbor, father-of-two Joseph Dalton, 37, was also killed during the tornado, when his trailer was swept up by the twister and came crashing down on the home where Perez lived with the father of her two children. 

Perez's partner, her other child, as well as Dalton's children were taken to a local hospital for minor injuries. 

Officials earlier named 10-year-old Arlan Burnham as one of those confirmed dead in the town of Clarksville, around 50 miles north of Nashville. 

Neighbor Wanda McClemor told News Channel 5 that she went out in search of the toddler on Saturday night when his father said that he couldn't find him.

'We were out here listening for a baby, and they thought maybe (the child) had blown away.'

When he was found, McClemor said that rescue workers told her that Perez was still clutching the child. 

In an interview with the station, Perez's partner said that the family was asleep when the storm hit.  

Another neighbor told WKRN in an interview that she was concerned about Dalton and Perez's trailers during the storm because of their proximity to some trees. 

'I was praying about the trailers, and the trees not falling on the trailer, that’s what I was really worried about, but I wasn’t expecting the storm to get that bad,' Sue Prior said. 

'We see them all the time, you know, we’re pretty small here, so everybody kind of sees everybody in and out, knows everybody,' she added. 

According to a post on Facebook, Perez and her son were natives of Guatemala. 

Marco Tulio Gabriel Pérez came to Nashville from Atlanta after hearing that his sister and nephew were killed in the tornado. He said two other children in the family survived with minor injuries.

Family members were crying as they looked through the rubble of the trailers on Sunday morning. 

'Regrettably, a tragedy happened here. Since it’s a tornado, it came through like you can see here. She lived in this trailer. The other trailer overturned on top of my deceased sister. She remained underneath, the other trailer went on top,' Marco Perez said. 

Two other adults who died in Clarksville have not been named. A total of 83 people were hurt and 23 are being treated at local hospitals following the storms.

It was earlier reported that Arlan Burnham's family has been hit with the tragic loss of their son and the loss of their entire home from the mayhem.

'My beautiful baby boy, Arlan, did not make it out of the house. Ella was taken to the hospital but was released with superficial injuries. Archer was with his mom. Our home is gone,' the fourth-grader's mother, Katherine, said in a Facebook post.

Katherine posted a heartfelt tribute to Facebook for her son Arlan, where she described that their home 'was in the direct path of the tornado.' 

The family's two-story home collapsed and trapped Arlan and his older sister.

Neighbor Billy Urban rushed over to the scene as he helped pull the boy and his older sister from under the debris, but Arlan did not survive the wreckage. 

'I owe him so much. He saved our daughter,' Arlan's father Kyle told Clarksville Now. 

The family has urged others to show their support through a GoFundMe page that has been created by his colleagues.

'Please don't blow up Kat's phone. She has to replay this over and over again and it's getting exhausting having to hear her explain, cry and say thank you,' Kyle said in a Facebook post. 

Donations have poured in for the family as their page that was set to reach a maximum goal of $5,000 has now raised over $73,000.

Contributions made for the Burnham family are set to be used for rebuilding their home and funereal expenses for Arlan. 

The page said: 'Let us come together as a community to show Kyle Burnham and his family that they are not alone in their struggle.'

'Your generosity will provide them with the strength and resources needed to begin the healing process and rebuild their lives in the wake of this heartbreaking tragedy.' 

Besides monetary donations, clothing donations have also been requested for the family. Arlan was a fourth grader at West Creek Elementary School. 

Further donations can be made to the victims through United Way and Community Foundation here.  

Along with the massive tornadoes came hail the size of quarters pummeled down, while trees were uprooted, and power lines were downed in the deadly twisters.

Multiple municipalities reported roofs torn off homes - leaving thousands without power. Photos posted on social media showed damaged houses with debris strewn in the lawns, a tractor-trailer flipped on its side on a highway and insulation ripped out of building walls.

Clarksville Mayor Joe Pitts said in a statement: 'This is devastating news and our hearts are broken for the families of those who lost loved ones.

'The city stands ready to help them in their time of grief.'

A state of emergency was declared in Clarksville following the horrific twisters.

Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee said he and his wife, Maria, were praying for all Tennesseans who had been affected by the storms.

'We mourn the lives lost and ask that everyone continue to follow guidance from local and state officials,' Lee said in a statement.

The National Weather Service issued multiple tornado warnings in Tennessee, and said it planned to survey an area where an apparent tornado hit in Kentucky.

Shanika Washington said that as soon as she heard the storm sirens going off in her Clarksville neighborhood, she took her children, aged 5 and 10, to a windowless bathroom in the basement of her townhouse.

'The lights were flickering, so I knew it was somewhere close in the vicinity,' she said. 'I just kept praying to God as it was going on. It was very terrifying and scary.'

During their 20 harrowing minutes in the bathroom, Washington hovered over her children as a protective shield.

'The back door absolutely did fly open, and you just heard a bunch of wind,' she said. 'The blinds and stuff were like shaking really bad. I could tell that we were dead smack in the middle of a storm.'

When she came out of the bathroom, she looked out of a window and saw the destruction: Debris swept onto cars that had their windows broken out. Shutters ripped from homes.

Some roofs were ripped off townhouses. Air conditioning units and backyard grills were tossed like toys, and wooden dividers between townhouses were missing.

Because the power in the area was out, Washington took her children to a hotel for the night.

'I´m still shaken up a little bit, so I probably won't get much sleep tonight,' Washington said. 'I´m still trying to just kind of like process it all.'