Communities regroup after deadly storms destroyed homes and businesses: Updates
The National Guard is being deployed as residents across the U.S. began to assess the fallout from dozens of tornadoes, wildfires, and dust storms that left at least 42 people dead and hundreds of decimated buildings in their wake over the weekend.
Field crews from weather service offices across the central and eastern U.S. began surveying the damage Sunday after deaths were reported in Kansas, Mississippi, Arkansas, Texas, Alabama, Missouri, and Oklahoma, where almost 300 houses and structures were destroyed by wildfires. As clean-up begins for some, parts of the Central and Southern High Plains will be at risk for extreme or critical fire weather Monday, the National Weather Service said.
Nationwide, there were over 130,000 power outages Monday morning, according to Paste BN's outage tracker, including over 25,000 outages in Missouri, where at least a dozen people were killed and an EF-3 tornado with peak winds of 140 mph was reported Saturday.
President Donald Trump said in a statement that his office was monitoring the deadly bout of severe weather that struck the region and deploying the National Guard to Arkansas, where three people died. Dozens more were injured after an EF-3 tornado with 165 mph winds ripped through Cave City on Friday.
"My administration is ready to assist state and local officials, as they help their communities to try and recover from the damage," Trump said. "Please join Melania and me in praying for everyone impacted by these terrible storms!”
Death tolls rises from powerful storms
Missouri saw the highest initial death toll as state officials confirmed a dozen people were killed. In Kansas, eight people died when high winds and a dust storm caused a massive collision on Interstate 70 involving at least 71 vehicles, said Kansas Highway Patrol Trooper Tod Hileman.
Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves announced that six people died and at least 27 people were injured statewide during a news conference Sunday. Three people who had been reported missing on Saturday have also since been found alive, according to Reeves. Hundreds more were displaced by the storms.
The chief medical examiner's office in Oklahoma confirmed four fatalities occurred as a result of the fires or high winds. KFOR-TV reported that a father was killed and his son was severely burned on Friday.
Another four deaths were reported in two Texas counties after blowing dirt and wildfire smoke caused multiple car crashes Friday, Texas Department of Public Safety spokesperson Cindy Barkley told Paste BN. Nearly 40 vehicles were involved in another crash in Randall County, Barkley said, though no life-threatening injuries were reported. "We had so many crashes that day, I can't even keep up," she said.
Three people also died in Independence County, Arkansas, according to the state division of emergency management and 32 people were injured across eight counties. At least three people were killed in central Alabama and damage was reported in 52 of the state's 67 counties, Gov. Kay Ivey confirmed.
Severe weather also caused a tree to fall on a trailer in Brevard, North Carolina, killing two boys, ages 11 and 13, fire officials said Sunday. A tornado watch issued across a large swath of North Carolina and Virginia expired early Monday morning, though the National Weather Service in Wilmington reported the chance of showers and storms would continue.
Hundreds of wildfires reported in Oklahoma
The storm brought 60 to 70 mph winds to Oklahoma on Friday and the sustained gusts knocked down power lines, ripped off shingles from houses, broke tree limbs, felled street signs, caused road closures and filled the sky with dust. More than 130 fires were reported in 44 counties, the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management said Friday night.
Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt said about 170,000 acres in Oklahoma burned and promised a "post-mortem look" on the causes of the wildfires beyond the high winds and low humidity. "We think some of the power lines contributed to this," he said.
The National Weather Service issued a Fire Weather Watch from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday in several areas as southwest winds with gusts up to 35 to 45 mph are expected to hit much of central and southwest Oklahoma and meteorologists forecast conditions to be worse on Tuesday, posing higher risks for fires.
Families return to find homes destroyed by tornadoes, fire
The fires in Oklahoma destroyed hundreds of homes, including Stitt's farmhouse north of Luther. When Jeremy Cook returned to his neighborhood in Stillwater on Saturday morning, he found his home burned to the foundation.
He and his children left for safety Friday, loading up three cars full of wedding photos, pets, personal books, and family paintings. Cook said he had prepared as best he could, mowing and cutting any dead trees on his property, "but when that wind shifted, and that fire started coming, well my brick house burned down."
Cook said he’s had college friends drop everything to help, strangers dropping off food and water, and fellow churchgoers bringing clothes.
“It doesn't get better than Oklahomans; It really doesn't. They’re always there and there is nobody better than Okies,” Cook told The Oklahoman, which part of the Paste BN Network.
Meanwhile in Mississippi, Tyrene Power and her family found themselves buried under rubble after a tornado struck their home.
Power told the Mississippi Clarion Ledger, also part of the Paste BN Network, that sheet rock fell on her, which probably protected her from flying glass, but she doesn't remember much of the event including the roof being torn off. Power wasn't injured, but said a friend who was staying with her had to be taken to the hospital.
What Power endured on Saturday was so disorienting, she said she didn't know what day it was. She did know that the tornado that struck her home came sometime the previous afternoon. She said she knew the weather was bad, but didn't recognize anything that indicated a tornado.
"You know, they say you hear a train," Power said as she sat in a vehicle Sunday morning to stay warm outside of the remains of her destroyed home. "We heard no train. It was just the wind and then it was there."
Red flag warnings issued across central U.S.
Red flag warnings will also go into effect Monday in parts of Oklahoma, Texas, Colorado, Wyoming, South Dakota, Iowa, Nebraska, Missouri, Illinois, Arkansas, Kansas, New Mexico and Florida as high winds and low humidity raise the risk of wildfires, the National Weather Service said. Extremely critical fire weather conditions are also expected on Tuesday across southeast New Mexico, northwest Texas and the Texas Panhandle, an area home to more than 1.2 million people, the National Weather Service warned.
"A Red Flag Warning means that extreme fire weather conditions are either occurring now, or will shortly. A combination of strong winds, low relative humidity, and dry vegetation can contribute to extreme fire behavior," the weather service in Fort Worth, Texas said. "Avoid all outside burning and welding today. Do not toss lit cigarette butts outside."
Rain, light snow coming to Northeast, Central Appalachians
Additionally, the weather service said a front is expected to bring rain from the Northeast to the southern mid-Atlantic Coast by Monday evening, and the Northeast by Tuesday evening.
Light snow is also expected to fall over the Lower Great Lakes and Central Appalachians through late Monday afternoon, with light snow also developing over parts of northern New England from Monday evening into Tuesday morning.
Light to moderate snow is also expected to develop over parts of the Northern Rockies, Northern Plains, and Upper Mississippi Valley on Monday before moving into the North and Central High Plains by Tuesday evening, the weather service said.
Flights delayed during peak spring break travel
Thunderstorms brought rain and the threat of strong gusts, hail, and a brief tornado to Florida over the weekend, according to the National Weather Service in Melbourne.
The severe weather caused a temporary ground stop at Orland International Airport on Sunday, Federal Aviation Administration spokesperson Chris Mulloolytold Paste BN. More than 120 flights into or out of Orlando International Airport were also canceled and hundreds more were delayed Sunday, according to flight tracking website FlightAware as thunderstorms struck the area during what officials called the busiest weekend of the spring break travel period.
Contributing: Gabe Hauari, Paste BN; Rebecca Heliot, Nolan Clay and Josh Kelly, The Oklahoman; Brian Broom, Mississippi Clarion Ledger