Dangerous and deadly flash flooding — along with severe thunderstorms and at least one tornado — hit parts of the southern and central United States on Friday, while a late-season snowstorm was expected to cover parts of the Great Lakes. The Pacific Northwest also saw snowfall.
A tornado tore through a rural area in the Mississippi Delta Friday night, causing injuries, widespread damage and downed power lines as severe weather that produced golf-ball-sized hailstones moved across several Southern states.
The National Weather Service in Jackson confirmed that the tornado caused damage 60 miles northeast of Jackson. The cities of Silver City and Rolling Fork reported destruction as the tornado continued to move shortly before 9 p.m. to the northwest side of Cholla and along Interstate 49.
Rolling Fork Mayor Eldridge Walker told WLBT-TV he was unable to get out of his damaged home shortly after the tornado struck because power lines were down. He added that emergency teams are trying to transport the injured to hospitals. It was not immediately known how many people were injured.
Former Rolling Fork Mayor Fred Miller told the TV station that a tornado blew out the windows in the back of his house.
The National Weather Service in Jackson, Miss., reported that a law enforcement trooper told them that Sharkey Issaquina Community Hospital in Rolling Fork had been damaged by a tornado.
At approximately 9:40 GMT, the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency tweeted that search and rescue teams had been dispatched to Arkey and Hambres counties, and that a hospital in Sharkey was being evaluated. The agency said damage assessment would begin in the morning.
In Missouri, a flash flood killed two people early Friday. Another person was missing.
“It's a very windy month,” AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Bob Larson said. “It's the main battlefield, air-wise.”
Here's what you need to know about Friday's weather:
Flood watches across the central United States
More than 18 million people in parts of 10 states were under a flood watch Friday, as widespread rain and thunderstorms threatened to inundate the lower Mississippi, Tennessee and Ohio valleys.
The National Weather Service said flash floods could hit parts of Oklahoma, Arkansas, Tennessee, Missouri, Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.
Many of these states are expected to see heavy rains and strong winds, and some places are expected to see more than 4 inches of rain.
The National Weather Service forecast 2 to 3 inches of rain across much of Missouri and Illinois on Friday, and localized amounts of up to 5 inches are expected over southeast Missouri and southwestern Illinois.
On Saturday, parts of the Midwest and Northeast can expect high winds, with widespread gusts of 40 to 50 mph from Michigan through Indiana and Ohio to New York and western Pennsylvania.
Two people killed and one missing in Missouri floods
Two people were killed early Friday in southwest Missouri when a car was swept away during heavy rain.
The accident occurred shortly after midnight in a sparsely populated area. Authorities said six young men were in the car that was swept away when the vehicle attempted to cross a bridge over a flooded creek in the town of Grovespring. Four of them were able to get out of the water, but two of them did not.
Heavy rains overnight also washed away another car in Fordland, leaving one person missing, authorities said.
The vehicle was reportedly stranded near a low-water crossing at the Finley River Thursday night, according to the Logan Rogersville Fire Protection District.
Two people were rescued from the water and authorities continued to search for the missing person on Friday. Meanwhile, much of southern Missouri remained under flood watches or warnings.
An outbreak of severe weather threatens to occur in the south
Severe thunderstorms are expected across a large area of the south from the Gulf Coast region to the Tennessee Valley, with the epicenter over Jackson, Mississippi, almost to Memphis.
Residents can expect heavy rain, damaging winds of more than 60 mph, and the potential for large hail and tornadoes, Larson said.
A tornado warning has been issued for parts of Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Texas until 7:00 p.m. CST, the weather service said. A tornado watch means that weather conditions are favorable for tornadoes to form.
The storm system will head into the Carolinas by Saturday but is expected to weaken.
The weather service added that an “extremely hazardous weather event” is likely late Friday afternoon and into Friday night, with the main threat coming from potentially strong tornadoes.
“The most likely time period for strong tornadoes is between 5 p.m. and midnight Central American time,” the Storm Prediction Center said.
Earlier Friday morning, a suspected tornado touched down in North Texas. The possible tornado touched down around 5 a.m. in Wise County, damaging homes and downing trees and power lines. There were no reports of injuries.
In Kentucky:A flood warning has been issued for the Louisville area with a wet Friday.
Spring snowstorm for the Great Lakes and Northeast
A snowstorm is expected to hit the Great Lakes region, with 5 to 10 inches arriving in Traverse City, Michigan; and up to 6 inches in Madison, Wisconsin; Between 1 and 3 inches in Milwaukee.
“It looks like a big storm,” Larson said.
The storm is expected to move northeast later Friday night and into Saturday, bringing snow to upstate New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. Snowfall is expected to range between 6 and 12 inches in parts of Maine.
Winter storm map of the United States
Snow in the Pacific Northwest
Winter storm watches and warnings have been put in place for parts of the Pacific Northwest, where a storm from the Pacific Ocean will lead to a muddy Friday.
In Washington state, significant amounts of snow are expected, with accumulations of 8 to 18 inches in the Cascades above 2,500 feet.
Snow accumulations between 5 and 8 inches are likely below 2,000 feet along Washington's Coastal Range.
“Travel will be difficult through mountain passes,” the weather service in Pendleton, Oregon, said.
Heavy snow totals of more than a foot are also expected in the northern Rockies and south into the eastern Great Basin, with milder snowfall in the central Rocky Mountain ranges, the Weather Prediction Center said.
Snow accumulation is possible at any elevation across the greater Portland metro area through Friday morning and into Saturday morning, the weather service said.
“However, the chances of an inch or more of snow remaining around 20 to 30 percent at any given location in the inland lowlands during these times,” the weather service said.
“It's definitely going to be a period of bad weather,” Larson said.
National weather radar
Contributing: Dinah Pulver; Associated Press
