Click the map above for more information on the more than 50 deadly tornadoes of 2011.

In 2011, the April-June tornado season in the US is tied with the deadliest on record, with 519 deaths thus far. A typical year sees around 100 US deaths due to tornadoes and the previous record was 519 in 1953.

This year, around 1,000 total tornadoes have inflicted unpredented damage throughout "Tornado Alley", the large area between the Rockies and the Appalachian Mountains.

The bulk of the 2011 fatalities and property damage have occurred during two major tornado outbreaks.

The first occurred over a four-day period in late April and is known as the 2011 Super Outbreak. It most notably wreaked havoc in Alabama, but also produced destructive tornadoes throughout Arkansas, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, Tennesee and Virginia.

At least 344 were killed, with 238 in Alabama alone, making April 27 the deadliest tornado day since the 1925 "Tri-State" outbreak. Total property damage has been estimated at $10bn.

But the deadliest single tornado since 1947 occurred on May 22 in Joplin, Missouri, when 139 people were killed and 8,000 buildings were destroyed. On the Enhanced Fujita (EF) scale of tornado damage, the storm was given the highest "EF5" rating.