Worsening storms could bring big hail, tornadoes
A major storm system continued to slam the central and eastern United States on Tuesday as it moved across the country, destroying homes, toppling trees and causing widespread power outages. As the morning dawned, over 100,000 households in Missouri, Indiana, Kentucky and Tennessee were without power, according to a database maintained by USA TODAY.
The system has had coast-to-coast impacts since the weekend, when damaging hail fell across the Midwest and heavy rain in Southern California led to the partial collapse of a major highway. The storm has picked up force as it has headed east.
It followed a dangerous day in parts of the country Monday. At least three tornadoes were reported in Oklahoma Monday evening, according to AccuWeather, and a possible tornado damaged roofs and toppled trees and power lines, Osage County Sheriff Eddie Virden told television station KOTV-DT. Photos of an area north of Tulsa showed several flattened homes.
Large hail fell in parts of central Texas Monday, with wind gusts near 90 mph, AccuWeather said. More than 30 vehicles were involved and multiple people hurt in a pileup in west-central Texas during a storm Monday afternoon, reported West News 9, citing the Texas Department of Public Safety.
The National Weather Service warned of flash floods, long-track tornadoes and potential baseball-sized hail Tuesday in areas totaling about 50 million people. A squall line stretching across southern Indiana and a large portion of Kentucky threatened possible tornadoes, the weather service in Louisville said. Four to 8 inches of snow was forecast across northern Illinois, much of Wisconsin and Michigan.
The city of Evansville, Indiana, said in a post on X, formerly Twitter, that there was “significant storm damage” and urged residents to “please be careful if you have to go out!”
There were no immediate reports of injuries in the county, Sheriff Noah Robinson told the Evansville Courier & Press, part of the USA TODAY Network, but deputies were still canvassing damaged neighborhoods.
“It’s a little rough out here in the county, though the city has some power outages as well,” Robinson said. “We’re dealing with dozens of downed trees and in some cases power lines.”
As the week continues, the large storm system will bring showers and severe thunderstorms across the mid-Atlantic and parts of the Southeast, meteorologists said.
The National Weather Service warned of frequent lightning, strong wind gusts, hail and “a few tornadoes” from Wednesday to Thursday morning.
The storm will unleash snow throughout the Northeast Wednesday through Friday, the weather service said. With gusty winds, low visibility and slippery roads, there’s a high likelihood that the storm will disrupt travel. The heavy snow and powerful wind may also damage trees and impact infrastructure, the weather service said.
The storm is expected to subside by Friday, the weather service said.
Contributing: Doyle Rice and Thao Nguyen, USA TODAY; Ryan Reynolds and Jon Webb, Evansville Courier and Press