Storms roll eastward after slamming Texas; 3 deaths reported

A large storm system spouting heavy winds and possible tornados in Texas, Louisiana, Alabama and Kentucky damaged homes and buildings, downed trees, left thousands without power and was blamed for the deaths of three people Friday as it marched eastward, threatening heavy snow in the Midwest and Northeast.

In Alabama, a 70-year-old man sitting in his truck was killed when a tree fell onto his vehicle, and a woman died inside her SUV in west central Mississippi after a rotted tree branch struck her vehicle. In Arkansas, a man drowned after he drove into high flood waters.

The storm system turned toward New England, where a mix of snow, sleet and rain is expected across the region starting Friday night and lasting into Saturday, prompting the National Weather Service to issue a winter storm warning.

There's a chance of coastal flooding in Massachusetts and Rhode Island and the storm could bring as much as 18 inches (45 centimeters) of snow to parts of New Hampshire and Maine. The storm will also bring strong winds with gusts of 40 to 50 mph, which could cause power outages.

Airport officials in Portland, Maine, canceled several flights for Saturday ahead of the weather and some libraries and businesses in the region announced weekend closures. Still, with warmer weather expected to return by the end of the weekend, most New Englanders were taking the storm in stride.

It wasn't the same story in California, where the weather system slammed the state earlier in the week with as much as 10 feet (3 meters) of snow. Some residents in mountains east of Los Angeles will likely remain stranded in their homes for at least another week after the snowfall proved too much to handle for most plows.

But some residents of Louisiana, Kentucky and Texas emerged Friday to find their homes and businesses damaged and trees toppled by the reported tornadoes. Tens of thousands remained without power and some were also without water.

The Louisiana State Universityshreveport campus shut down overnight because of the weather, but a spokesperson said the campus reopened Friday.

In Texas, winds brought down trees, ripped the roof off a grocery store in Little Elm, north of Dallas, and overturned four 18-wheelers along U.S. Highway 75. Minor injuries were reported, police said.

Winds of nearly 80 mph (130 kph) were recorded near the Fort Worth suburb of Blue Mound. The roof of an apartment building in the suburb of Hurst was blown away, resident Michael Roberts told KDFW-TV.

"The whole building started shaking. ... The whole ceiling is gone," Roberts said. "It got really crazy."

Heavy rain was also reported in southern Missouri and northern Arkansas, causing flooding in both states, while hail and strong winds were reported in Oklahoma.

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Contributing to this report were Associated Press writers Margery Beck in Omaha, Nebraska; Corey Williams in Detroit; Mark Pratt in Boston; Chevel Johnson in New Orleans; Trisha Ahmed in St. Paul, Minnesota; Emily Wagster Pettus in Jackson, Mississippi; and Dylan Lovan in Louisville, Kentucky.