(CNN) More than two dozen tornadoes touched down in parts of the Deep South on Monday, killing at least three people.

Most of the tornadoes were reported in Mississippi, with several striking Louisiana, the National Weather Service said. The deaths occurred in Louisiana and Alabama, officials said.

The tornadoes injured people in several states, and damaged homes and churches, officials said.

They are part of a severe weather system moving east before the Christmas holiday. A strong cold front is bringing cold and snow across portions of the Midwest with more than 6 inches of snow in areas from Kansas to Indiana. The snow will continue across the Ohio Valley and into the Northeast through Tuesday morning.

In Vernon Parish, Louisiana, the storm killed 59-year-old Betty Patin, the Vernon Parish Sheriff's Department said in a Facebook post. Patin was in her mobile home which was destroyed in the tornado, authorities said. Several churches in Vernon Parish were damaged, authorities said.

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