Tornado warning forces England players to take shelter indoors in America

Tornado sirens wailed in Kansas City, the US city hosting the England national football team's World Cup training camp, warning of an approaching severe thunderstorm that could turn into a hurricane, just hours after the team's arrival in the city.

The US National Weather Service issued urgent warnings urging residents to immediately head to safe shelters, warning of strong winds that could reach speeds of up to 129 kilometers per hour, and stressing that weather conditions could pose a direct threat to life due to flying debris.

The agency issued a strongly worded warning statement:
"Take shelter inside a sturdy building and away from windows, as flying debris could be fatal to those left out in the open without shelter."

According to British media reports, the England national team players were asked to remain inside their training facilities as a precautionary measure, and a public festival that was scheduled to take place in the city was cancelled early in the interest of public safety.

The England team had held a training session earlier in the day before the weather warnings were issued, despite their delegation recently being the victim of a theft of training equipment while in the United States.

These events come just days before England's campaign in Group 12 begins, with the team facing Croatia next Wednesday in Arlington.

In a separate incident, the national team delegation had sports equipment stolen during their stay in Florida, before authorities later announced the recovery of a large part of the stolen items, including goalkeeper Dean Henderson's shoes, amid extensive security investigations by local and federal authorities.