MIAMI, Sept 16: Tornadoes and rough conditions linked to the fury of Hurricane Ivan claimed at least nine lives in the United States, most in Florida and one in Louisiana, local authorities and media said on Thursday.

Two people were killed in Bay County, northwest Florida in tornadoes spawned by the monster storm, which destroyed homes and left people trapped in the rubble, country spokeswoman Catherine McNaught said.

In Calhoun county, northeast of Bay county, local media said, five more people were killed in tornadoes that flattened part of the area. Local authorities did not immediately confirm these deaths.

A youth was killed in Santa Rosa, northeast of Pensacola, when a tree crashed into a mobile home, the Pensacola News Journal said quoting local officials.

In Louisiana, a woman died being transferred from a residence for the elderly to a storm shelter as the storm raged in Washington parish, an emergency services spokeswoman Adelaida Eichenauer said. -AFP