New threat after relentless rain? Rivers dangerously rising: Updates
Parts of the storm-swamped South were under new tornado and flood alerts Sunday, the latest threats from a multi-day bout of deadly, vicious weather that has left communities reeling across the U.S.
Forecasters warned that cities remain in peril into the coming week as river levels rise dangerously from Arkansas to Ohio, even as skies brighten. Some rivers in Kentucky were expected to exceed their flood stages by upward of 15 feet as waterways started to crest Sunday, according to estimates from the National Weather Service in Louisville.
Tornado warnings were issued Sunday in Alabama and Mississippi, and flash flood warnings were posted in Kentucky, Mississippi, and Tennessee, according to Accuweather.
"A life-threatening, catastrophic and potentially historic flash flood event continues across the Lower Ohio Valley into the Mid-South," the National Weather Service said Sunday, warning that "very large hail, damaging winds and strong tornadoes" were possible.
The torrential rainfall — which followed potent tornadoes earlier last week — has fueled flooding that has ravaged states in the central and southern U.S., shredding roofs, flattening homes and businesses, sending structures floating down rivers, and leaving thousands without power.
Hundreds of roads were closed Sunday in Kentucky because of rising water and rockslides. Flooding tore apart a railroad bridge near Mammoth Spring, Arkansas, derailing a train and plunging cars into the Warm Fork Spring River.
Some cities in Tennessee and Kentucky have reported double-digit rainfall totals from the storms as of Sunday, Accuweather said. The highest rainfall total was 13.4 inches in Mayfield, Kentucky, in the western part of the state, according to the Weather Prediction Center.
A stationary atmospheric river — basically, a river in the sky — first triggered tornadoes and relentless rain from Arkansas to Illinois on Wednesday and Thursday and continued into the weekend. Forecasters had warned that the system could dump several months' worth of rain in some areas.
At least 17 dead in severe weather
At least 17 people have died in the onslaught, including 10 in Tennessee and seven others across Missouri, Indiana, Kentucky, Arkansas, and Mississippi, according to officials and published reports.
On Sunday, Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves announced on social media one storm-related death in his state and said damage has been reported in 14 counties statewide. Tate said authorities have received reports of damaged homes, trees down, flooding, and power outages as damage assessments are underway.
"Tragically, one fatality was reported in Jasper County. Additionally, one injury was reported in Pontotoc County. Please pray for these Mississippians and their families," Reeves said. "The state of Mississippi remains in close contact with local emergency managers and will continue to respond as necessary."
Floodwaters swept away a young boy in Frankfurt, Kentucky, while he was walking to a school bus stop Friday morning. The Franklin County Coroner's Office identified the boy as Gabriel Andrews, 9.
"Kentucky, I have some tough news to share," Gov. Andy Beshear said on X. "This morning in Frankfort, a child died after being swept away by floodwaters. My heart breaks for this family."
Beshear warned Sunday that the state was not out of the woods. "Kentucky, there is record flooding across our state, with over 500 road closures. Rivers have not yet crested, so we still have a day − if not more − of rising waters. We’ve already lost two of our people, both children of God loved by many," he said.
River flooding fears rise in Tennessee
In Tennessee, where the death toll from tornadoes and flooding doubled in two days to 10, flooding risks remained Sunday, particularly river flooding.
“We have several rivers expected to go into major flood,” Krissy Hurley, a Nashville meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said. The Cumberland River in Clarksville and Red River in Port Royal have “decent odds of hitting moderate and major flood stage.”
Among the storm deaths in the state: a lineman with Carroll County Electric, who was killed while on the job Thursday during a severe weather outbreak in the early morning hours. "Our hearts are with the family and friends of Chance Carlton, a lineman with the Carroll County Electric Department who lost his life while working during the recent storms," the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency wrote in a social media post Sunday.
Carlton, 32, was remembered in an online death notice as a devoted husband, a father of two girls, active in his Baptist church, and a person who enjoyed trail riding on horseback and bird hunting with his two dogs.
Where are the storms headed?
A stubborn frontal boundary − and with it the rain − will start to shift east Sunday, the National Weather Service said.
"With its eastward push, moisture along and ahead of the front will become focused from the Appalachians to the Central Gulf Coast, setting the stage for intense downpour producing thunderstorms throughout the day," the weather service said.
Chances for catastrophic flooding seen at the end of the last week and over the weekend would diminish, the forecasters said, but heavy rainfall could still lead to significant flash flooding.