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Three children were among the 23 people killed by a powerful EF-4 tornado that hit southern Lee County on Sunday, officials said Monday.

Birmingham National Weather Service chief meteorologist Chris Darden said the tornado was nearly a mile wide at .87 miles and stayed touched down on the ground for at least 24 miles. It had winds of 170 miles per hour.

The track could be longer.

It was the deadliest tornado in the United States since 2013, and it was the first EF-4 tornado in Alabama since 2011, Darden said. Another smaller EF-1 tornado crossed paths with the larger tornado.

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GALLERY: Officials speak at a press conference one day after deadly tornado

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It was "a monster tornado as it moved across the area," Darden said.

The four school-aged children who died in the storm were ages 6, 9 and 10, according to Lee County Coroner Bill Harris.

"Y'all, we will overcome this loss. We have done it before, we will do it again, and we will do it together," Gov. Kay Ivey said at the press conference.

One of them, Taylor Thornton, has been identified by her school, Lee-Scott Academy. The 6-year-old has been identified as Armando Hernandez. The other victims have not been identified by authorities. Harris said 22 of the victims died at the scene of the tornado, and one died in a hospital from critical injuries.

East Alabama Medical Center said they have been treating at least 40 people injured in the storm. Some of those were in critical condition, Sheriff Jay Jones said. 

Dozens were still missing as of Monday evening, Jones said. Rescue crews used dogs, drons and other tools to search for victims in the wreckage of flipped cars, snapped pines and destroyed homes.

The most severe damage and most of the deaths were confined to a mobile home community south of Beauregard. 

Homes were swept away, leaving only their slabs.

Jones said the death toll is steady at 23 for now, but there are still "dozens" of homes that have not been searched yet. He and the coroner warned that the death toll could rise as crews become able to comb through miles of damage.

"We have not completed our searches," Jones said, though the most significant damage at a mobile home park near Beauregard has been searched.

Search teams have been working the scene since Monday morning. They searched on Monday night, as well, but efforts had to be called off temporarily overnight. More than 100 people arrived to help with the search teams.

"We had an overwhelming response from the community, from all over the state and from our friends in Georgia, as well," Jones said. 

Harris said he is working with families to make sure they are notified as quickly as possible. Most of the families have already been notified, but six of the victims could not be positively identified with sight. He said they will need to be identified using fingerprints.

Missing persons can be reported to the Lee County EMA or the Lee County Sheriff's Office.

"This is the worst natural disaster that has ever occurred in Lee County," said Lee County EMA Director Kathrine Carson. "Most of us cannot remember anything ever creating this much loss of life."

Carson said President Donald Trump called Lee County's emergency operations center Monday morning and offered his support after he called Ivey.

The governor extended a state of emergency after the storm Sunday evening.

"We lost children, mothers, fathers, neighbors and friends," Ivey said. "To know Alabama is to know that we are a tight-knit community of people. And today, each of us mourns the loss of life of our fellow Alabamians."

Ivey said all of Alabama is focused on Lee County.

"I want you to know, I've got your back," Ivey said. "We will do everything in our power to help the citizens of Lee County recover."

Jones and Lee County District Attorney Brandon Hughes have warned against price gouging for hotels and other necessities. 

The National Weather Service began issuing alerts and outlooks that tornadoes would be possible on Thursday. 

"We raised alarm bells," Darden said.

He noted that official warnings aren't issued until the tornadoes form. Two tornado warnings were issued Sunday in Lee County. 

"We had tornado warnings for Lee County 8 to 10 minutes before it actually hit the Beauregard community," Darden said.

Community Reporter Cory Blackmon contributed reporting.

This story will be updated.

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