Alabama was bracing for Round 2 of severe weather on Saturday. Round 1 started early this morning and prompted two tornado warnings and multiple severe thunderstorm warnings but no damage has been reported so far.

We all hear the terms when there's a threat of severe weather. But what does each alert mean, and how does it affect you?

An "outbreak" of tornadoes and severe thunderstorms is expected through Saturday night in Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and other southern states.

At least 12 fatalities have been reported in Missouri, according to the Missouri State Emergency Management Agency. The deaths come as a massive storm system moving across the country unleashed winds that damaged buildings, whipped up deadly dust storms and fanned more than 100 wildfires.

The most dangerous threat was in parts of Louisiana and Mississippi, where intense long-duration tornadoes were striking on Saturday, forecasters said.