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11-Month-Old Becomes First Tornado-Related Death of 2014

An 11-month-old boy who was trapped with his mother inside their home by a powerful twister in eastern North Carolina died on Sunday.
Image: Gavin Soto, 11-months-old, died from injuries sustained during a tornado on Friday. Soto is the first tornado victim of 2014.
11-month-old Gavin Soto died from injuries sustained during a tornado on Friday.Family photo via WAVY.com

An 11-month-old boy who was trapped with his mother inside their home by a powerful twister in eastern North Carolina died on Sunday — the first tornado-related death of 2014.

People passing by the wreckage after the tornado Friday heard the woman and helped free her and her injured baby. He died at a hospital in Norfolk, Virginia, NBC station WAVY reported.

Image: Gavin Soto, 11-months-old, died from injuries sustained during a tornado on Friday. Soto is the first tornado victim of 2014.
11-month-old Gavin Soto died from injuries sustained during a tornado on Friday.Family photo via WAVY.com

North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory toured the devastation left by two EF2 tornadoes in Beaufortd and Chowan counties on Sunday and visited the collapsed home, the station said.

On Friday, a string of tornadoes ripped through the area, causing 25 injuries, though the baby boy is believed to have been the only person critically injured.

More than 300 homes and structures were destroyed or severely damaged by the storm system.

Julia Jarema, a spokeswoman for North Carolina's Department of Public Safety, confirmed to NBC News that the 11-month-old boy, who suffered critical injuries in a tornado this past Friday, died on Sunday morning.

He was from Chowan County in the northeastern part of the state.

His death was the first tornado-related death since Dec. 21, 2013.

—Jeff Black