(CNN) A devastating series of tornadoes ripped through Alabama on Sunday, killing at least 23 people in one county.

The victims including children, died in Lee County, said Sheriff Jay Jones. At least 12 of those deaths occurred in an area about 5 to 6 miles south of the city of Opelika, he said.

Jones initially reported 14 deaths. Later Sunday, he updated the number and told CNN affiliate WRBL "that number may rise yet again."

Jones described massive damage that appeared "as if someone had taken a blade and just scraped the ground." He estimated a path of destruction about half a mile wide that stretched several miles to the east from where the tornado touched down.

It appeared that two tornadoes hit Lee County back-to-back within the span of an hour, CNN Meteorologist Gene Norman said. At least a dozen tornadoes touched down in Alabama and Georgia on Sunday afternoon, according to the National Weather Service.

A fallen cell tower lies across U.S. Route 280 highway in Lee County, Alabama, after what appeared to be a tornado struck in the area.

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