Severe storms pound South, East day after deadly twisters in Midwest
Severe storms lashed the southern and eastern U.S. Wednesday, a day after violent storms spawned several tornadoes that killed at least three people and damaged or destroyed hundreds of homes in the Midwest.
The Storm Prediction Center said only two tornadoes were reported Wednesday, but there were hundreds of reports of wind and hail damage from Mississippi to New Jersey. In New York City, a midday lightning bolt struck at LaGuardia Airport, causing a hole that forced a runway to temporarily close.
A day earlier, compact but strong storms, known as supercells, raked parts of Arkansas, Iowa, Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee. About two dozen tornadoes were reported across four states late Tuesday into early Wednesday, according to the Storm Prediction Center.
In Missouri, the highway patrol said at least one person was killed in Perryville, about 80 miles south of St. Louis, when a twister crossed Interstate 55, scattering cars, including a tractor-trailer, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported. At least a dozen homes were leveled in the town of about 8,000 people.
"It's mind-boggling, I can't believe what I'm seeing," Hank Voelker, a Perry County resident and leader of the local emergency management agency, told the Post-Dispatch. "It's like a bomb went off." The twister spent up to 15 miles on the ground.
Power went out for tens of thousands of people in several states. The twister that struck Ottawa toppled about 70 power lines. The Ameren Illinois power company said more than 12,500 people were without power early Wednesday in that state, while Ameren Missouri said 11,600 customers were affected. Another 31,000 customers were out of power in Arkansas early Wednesday.
In Arkansas, an apparent tornado damaged at least 40 homes in the town of Higginson, KARK-TV reported. In Bald Knob, hundreds of people took shelter at Bald Knob High School in Arkansas after a tornado warning was issued in the area. The school is hosting a state basketball tournament this week.
Contributing: Associated Press