Severe weather hits many U.S. states
Winds, floods, fallen trees cause damage
ATLANTA — Potent thunderstorms have been blamed for one death and left more than 200,000 people without power across the southern United States as fierce winds walloped several states and new storms formed Thursday, forecasters said.
Fallen trees ripped down power lines and crashed into buildings from Texas to Alabama overnight and into Thursday morning, the national Storm Prediction Center reported. A few isolated tornadoes were reported.
Straight-line winds of up to 85 mph damaged roofs Wednesday in the Texas city of Greenville, the National Weather Service reported Thursday. In Mississippi, Jackson Salter, 19, died when a tree fell on his home Wednesday night, according to the Washington County Coroner .
More than 70,000 homes and businesses were without power in Arkansas Thursday, and more than 30,000 outages each were reported in Texas, Louisiana and Alabama.
The storms were moving east, with more severe weather possible Thursday in Alabama and Georgia, all the way up to Pennsylvania, forecasters said.
An area that includes North and South Carolina, and eastern Georgia saw enhanced risk of wind damage from powerful Thursday afternoon storms, the Storm Prediction Center said.
Downburst winds — which descend from a thunderstorm and spread out when they hit the ground — appeared the greatest threat in this area Thursday, said Dan Miller at the National Weather Service in Columbia, South Carolina.
On Thursday afternoon, severe thunderstorm watches covered large parts of Alabama, Georgia and North and South Carolina, bringing the risk of tornadoes and very large hail to flood-weary residents of the Missouri River Valley, forecasters said.
In Ohio, heavy rains led to landslides and flooded highways.
Flooding also caused travel problems, and forced service to be suspended between Philadelphia and New Jersey. The Delaware River was overflowing in places and people were rescued from high water.
A supermarket roof collapsed in suburban Philadelphia, causing sprinkler system pipes to break and send water gushing down.