Multiple tornadoes were reported across parts of the South and the Midwest on Wednesday and early Thursday, brought by a powerful storm that was expected to linger for days and bring excessive rain and flooding.
People were reported injured in Kentucky, Arkansas and Missouri, including a child in critical condition, and one person was rescued from a collapsed warehouse in Indiana, officials said. The tornadoes knocked down trees, disrupted power and damaged homes and businesses.
“This is a reminder for all of Kentucky that we are facing one of the most serious weather events we’ve had forecast,” the state’s governor, Andy Beshear, said on social media. He warned of tornadoes, hail, damaging wind, widespread rain and possible flooding.
Tornado watches and warnings were in place early Thursday in a diagonal line stretching hundreds of miles northeast from Arkansas to Illinois. Some of the warnings were issued near Memphis, Louisville and Nashville.
The National Weather Service also warned of heavy rainfall over the coming days that could cause “catastrophic and life-threatening flooding” from the Ozarks into the Ohio River Valley.
More than 300,000 customers were without power early Thursday in Indiana, Ohio, Arkansas, Mississippi, Missouri, Kentucky and Tennessee. Over half were in Indiana.
Tens of millions of people in a wide swath of the South and Midwest stretching from Texas to Michigan were also under flood watches and warnings.
At least eighteen tornadoes had been reported since Wednesday morning across Arkansas, Illinois, Kentucky and Missouri, according to the National Weather Service. Nine were in Missouri.
Here’s a snapshot of storm activity and damage as of 3 a.m. Eastern time:
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In Arkansas, the Division of Emergency Management said it had received reports of tornadoes on the ground. Four injuries were reported in Craighead County, and 22 counties across the state reported storm damage to homes, trees, power lines and roads, officials said. The National Weather Service forecast large hail across portions of central and southwestern Arkansas on Thursday.
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In Indiana, emergency workers freed a woman who had been trapped after a warehouse for the kitchenware company Sur La Table collapsed in the town of Brownsburg, local officials said.
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In Kentucky, four people in a van in the path of a tornado were injured in Ballard County, including an 8-year-old boy who was in critical condition, said Travis Holder, the director of the county’s emergency management office. A tornado also narrowly missed the Weather Service’s office in the city of Paducah, knocking out its main power supply, the agency said on social media.
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In Missouri, the damage from a tornado in the city of Nevada was extensive and there were reports of one injury, said Gary Edwards, the city manager. One fatality was reported in Cape Girardeau, according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, although it was not immediately clear whether it was related to the storm. Tornadoes have been reported in the area, according to the Weather Service.
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In Tennessee, the Weather Service reported multiple tornadoes touching down.
The storm system originated on the West Coast on Monday and churned across the Plains on Tuesday.
Forecasters predicted that thunderstorms could produce destructive winds, large hail and significant long-track tornadoes across an area that included parts of Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas.
The storm system generating the tornadoes was expected to stall by Thursday, and 10 to 15 inches of rain may fall in some parts of the South and Midwest over the next five days, forecasters said.
Nazaneen Ghaffar, Judson Jones and Claire Moses contributed reporting.
Yan Zhuang is a Times reporter in Seoul who covers breaking news. More about Yan Zhuang
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