Severe Weather Leaves Thousands Without Power in Central US
Tornadoes and severe thunderstorms have left nearly 300,000 residents across seven states without power as of Monday night. Over the weekend, powerful storms claimed at least 23 lives and caused widespread destruction in the central US.
Forecasters have indicated that the highest weather risk has now shifted east, spanning from Alabama to New York. More thunderstorms, damaging wind gusts, hail, and flash flooding are anticipated.
Heavy rain is expected to hit the east coast into Tuesday morning, affecting areas including New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Maryland, according to the National Weather Service (NWS). This rain brings a slight risk of severe thunderstorms from the northeast to the southeast US.
The NWS also forecasts severe thunderstorms in Texas on Tuesday, with wind gusts potentially reaching 120 km/h or higher.
Parts of the southern US will continue to experience extreme heat, with record or near-record high temperatures expected.
On Monday morning, more than 120 million Americans were under severe weather warnings. Sunday was the year's busiest severe weather day in the US, with over 600 reports of storm damage across 20 states. Tornadoes and strong winds destroyed buildings, overturned cars, and downed power lines.
Lightning, thunder, and heavy rain forced the evacuation of around 125,000 spectators as Sunday's Indianapolis 500 race was delayed by four hours.
Weather-related deaths were reported in multiple states, including eight in Arkansas, seven in Texas, two in Oklahoma, and five in Kentucky. In Alabama, a 79-year-old woman was killed Monday morning when a tree fell on her home, local media reported.
President Joe Biden spoke with the governors of each state affected by the storms, and offered federal assistance.
On Monday, Kentucky Governor Andy Bashear declared a state of emergency after storms pummelled much of the state.
"Last night many families and communities were not safe," he said. "We had devastating storms that hit almost the entire state."
In Colorado, a farmer and 34 of his cows were killed in a lightning strike.
In Texas, Governor Greg Abbott said more than a third of counties were subject to a disaster declaration after extreme weather ploughed through the state.
All of the state's seven deaths were reported in Valley View in Cooke County, Texas near the Oklahoma border after a tornado hit a rural area near a mobile home park.
Two children, aged two and five, and three members of the same family were among those found dead.
Video from the scene showed a filling station and rest stop nearly obliterated, with damaged vehicles covered in twisted metal debris.
These recent tornadoes follow a devastating one that hit a rural Iowa town earlier in May, killing four people. Government forecasters have also suggested that this summer could see an "extraordinary" 2024 Atlantic hurricane season, which starts next month.
