The National Weather Service warned that southern tornadoes and thunderstorms would spread across the U.S. during the weekend of Labor Day, April 12.
Severe storms were expected to stretch from Alabama to upstate New York on Monday evening, according to the National Weather Service. Forecasters said the storms could lead to intense rainfall in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, with flash flooding possible. There is a chance of hail, heavy winds, and tornadoes in the area from northeast Maryland to New York.
The weather service said heavy rain may lead to scattered instances of flash flooding. There is a chance for another round of showers and storms to develop along a cold front by the afternoon hours, with a major threat shifting east across the Ohio Valley overnight.
The National Weather Service issued tornado warnings and severe thunderstorm warnings in Texas, Oklahoma, Kentucky and Arkansas throughout the Memorial Day weekend. The NWS office in Fort Worth said one of the storms was expected to contain “golf ball sized hail!”
On Sunday afternoon, a major swath of the U.S was facing an “enhanced risk” of severe weather, including large parts of the Ohio and Mississippi Valleys, according to the National Weather Service.
Kentucky’s governor made a state of emergency on X early Monday. There are multiple reports of wind damage and tornadoes, Beshear wrote.
The website Poweroutage.us reported hundreds of thousands without power on Monday. More than 120,000 customers in Kentucky were without power as of 5:30 p.m. ET, according to the website. Data showed Arkansas and West Virginia each had more than 40,000 customers without electricity.
Powerful tornadoes and thunderstorms ripped through parts of Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas late Saturday evening and Sunday morning, leaving at least 18 people dead and causing widespread damage.
In a news conference Monday, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said four people were killed in four different counties after storms ripped through most of the state on Sunday. Later Monday, Beshear confirmed a fifth storm related death.
“It could have been much worse,” Beshear said of this weekend’s storms. “The people of Kentucky are very weather aware with everything we’ve been through.”
The east side of Charleston and parts of Kentucky saw damage Sunday night. A number of communities in western Kentucky were ravaged by tornadoes in 2021, killing 81 people.
Nick Bailey, head of the emergency management division in Hopkins County, was quoted by The Associated Press as saying there were a lot of people that were just getting their lives back together. The houses are the same as the spot.
The White House said the Federal Emergency Management Agency was on the ground conducting damage assessments with state and local authorities. President Biden has asked federal agencies to give support.
Delay and cancellation statistics in New Jersey and LaGuardia, according to the Flight Aware website. An additional 400 flights were cancelled on Monday afternoon
There are more than 400 flights that have been canceled as of Monday afternoon, according to the Flight Aware website. Newark Liberty airport in New Jersey and New York’s LaGuardia airport had the most delays and canceled flights.