A multi-day severe weather event was expected to continue Tuesday across parts of the South, bringing a threat of damaging winds, hail and devastating tornadoes to the region for a third consecutive day.
"Don't be a victim (Tuesday) ... make sure you have your guard up. We could see violent storms again today," said Dr. Greg Postel, storm specialist for The Weather Channel.
Dozens of tornadoes flared up across the South Monday, inflicting widespread damage across Alabama and Mississippi that contributed to the deaths of more than a dozen individuals. Preliminary reports from the National Weather's Storm Prediction Center indicate 80 reports of tornadoes from 3 p.m. CDT Monday through 2 a.m. Tuesday, though the number of confirmed tornadoes could be different as surveys are conducted by the NWS.
At least nine people were killed in Mississippi from the wave of tornadoes that scarred the state, seven of which died in Winston County. Two people were killed in Limestone County, Ala. after a tornado swept through the area Monday evening, Limestone County officials told the Associated Press. In total, at least 31 people have been killed, and countless more injured, from the severe storms that started in the Midwest Sunday and continue to push into the South into Tuesday.
(MORE: Track the Ongoing Severe Threat | Live Updates)
Arkansas suffered some of the heaviest damage and the largest number of deaths so far from the multi-day severe outbreak, after tornadoes from a long-lived supercell thunderstorm ripped through the center of the state, killing at least 15 people Sunday.
Below is a rundown of the outbreak's impact for each state:
Alabama
A series of tornadoes lashed the Birmingham and Tuscaloosa, Ala. metro areas in the late evening hours Monday. A debris ball showed up on radar over Bessemer, Ala., just to the southwest of downtown Birmingham, but the reported tornado fizzled out before it could inflict further damage on highly populated areas. In Bessemer, Jefferson County Emergency Management officer Horace Walker told AL.com that there were no fatalities in the area, but damage was reported at an apartment complex near UAB Medical West hospital. The full extent of damage in Bessemer may not be known until the daylight hours.
Reporting live from Salem, Alabama, Tuesday morning, The Weather Channel meteorologist Kait Parker remarked on the widespread damage in the town just east of Auburn.
"I'm in the middle of devastation," she said. "I'm absolutely in the middle of devastation here. There's more than structural damage here. We're talking about a neighborhood that's gone."
In Tuscaloosa, 21-year-old John Servati was killed when a possible tornado struck near Tuscaloosa Monday night, according to ESPN.com. Servati and his girlfriend were hiding in the basement when a retaining wall was knocked onto him. He was a member of the swimming and diving team at the University of Alabama.
Photos to the north, in Kimberly, Ala., show a fire station and church destroyed in the small town roughly 20 minutes north of the Birmingham area.
Limestone County Emergency Director Rite White told the Associated Press that two people were confirmed killed west of Athens, Ala. in a mobile home park there. That tornado left EF3 damage, as confirmed by a National Weather Service crew that surveyed the damage on Tuesday. The twister packed winds as high as 165 mph.
Governor Robert Bentley declared a state of emergency in Alabama as severe weather continued to impact the state Monday night.
More than 50,000 people were without power across Alabama as of 1 a.m. Tuesday. Flooding also remains a concern – Mobile reported at 4.6 inches of rain Tuesday morning.
Arkansas
From communities west of Little Rock to others well north of the capital, emergency workers and volunteers were going door-to-door Monday checking for victims. West of Little Rock, the first large tornado formed Sunday night just after 7 p.m. local time. The tornado, which showed a debris signature on radar, moved west of Maumelle and continued on the ground for a long period of time. The photo below was taken near Mayflower by storm chaser James Bryant.
"We don't have a count on injuries or missing. We're trying to get a handle on the missing part," Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe said during a Monday news conference. "Just looking at the damage, this may be one of the strongest we have seen."
The tornado that hit Vilonia and nearby Mayflower could be rated as the nation's strongest twister to date this year. National Weather Service meteorologists confirmed it will be rated no lower than EF3, which has winds greater than 136 mph.
The tornado smashed through Vilonia, causing major damage, and also hit El Paso. Additional tornadoes were reported farther northeast near Denmark, Macks, and Jacksonport from the parent thunderstorm.
At least 15 people were killed by tornadoes in Arkansas Sunday night. Officials released a list of the victims on Monday evening. Surveys taken this week will determine whether a single long-track tornado continued into those areas or whether several different tornadoes were spawned.
The closest hospital to the deadly tornado that struck central Arkansas says it's treated about 100 patients for storm-related injuries. Conway Regional Medical Center said Monday morning that nine of those patients were admitted to the hospital and another 10 people were transferred to hospitals in Little Rock.
Conway is in between the cities of Mayflower and Vilonia, where a massive tornado caused widespread damage Sunday night.
Arkansas Children's Hospital in Little Rock says it received 18 patients with injuries from the Sunday storms. Hospital spokeswoman Hilary DeMillo says the emergency room treated patients with broken bones, cuts and head injuries, and some patients required emergency surgery.
Georgia
Georgia residents awoke to lightning, thunder, strong winds and scattered power outages Tuesday morning as another round of severe weather was expected to hit the state Tuesday evening. As a result, the state's Emergency Management Agency has activated its state operations center, according to AJC.com.
Monday evening, a tornado was on the ground in Troup County, carving a 5.5-mile path of damage across western Georgia. A survey crew at the National Weather Service announced Tuesday that the twister was an EF2, packing winds as high as 120 mph.
(PHOTOS: Horrific Damage Left Behind)
Governor Nathan Deal declared a state of emergency as severe weather rolled into Georgia.
“At this juncture, we’ve declared the emergency for the entire state because it’s impossible to pinpoint where the weather will hit,” Deal said in a press release. “Georgia is threatened at least through tomorrow and perhaps into Wednesday. We’re prepared now and we’ll be ready for recovery should we, God forbid, experience tornado damage or flooding.
Iowa
Authorities in southeastern Iowa say one person is dead and others are injured after powerful storms swept through the state.
Keokuk County emergency management coordinator Larry Smith says one person died Sunday when strong winds caused an outbuilding to collapse in a rural area near Kinross. He says the victim's identity is being withheld pending notification of relatives.
One tornado was spotted northeast of Mount Vernon, Iowa, Sunday afternoon. The other tornado was spotted in a field north of Floris, Iowa. At least one farm near Wapello sustained damage to the roof and porch.
South of Udell, several farm buildings were damaged or destroyed as the storms moved through. Several trees about one-foot in diameter were snapped off. The roof of the Oskaloosa Family Medical Center in Mahaska was damaged.
Kansas
A tornado that tore through the southeastern Kansas town of Baxter Springs left 25 people injured and more than 100 homes and businesses damaged but caused no serious injuries or deaths, Cherokee County Sheriff David Groves said Monday. The tornado was given a preliminary EF2 rating by the National Weather Service on Monday.
Nine of those injured when the storm hit Sunday evening were hospitalized with injuries that are not considered life-threatening. A person who died Sunday night suffered from a medical condition and the death was not attributed to the storm, he added.
The storm did damage ranging from minor to total destruction of 100 homes and 12 businesses in the town of about 4,200. On Monday, workers were restoring power to about 40 percent of the community and to 91 residents whose gas was disconnected after the twister.
The storm, which Groves said was 2 miles long and 2 blocks wide, also left behind mounds of debris, twisted metal, hanging power lines and residents grateful to have survived.
Sue McBride woke up Monday at a Red Cross emergency shelter. She said she saw the tornado coming and was able to get inside her home before glass started flying around her. She says she survived without a scratch.
The tornado struck around 5:45 p.m. Sunday, cutting a diagonal through the town of about 4,200 people. Baxter Springs is located about six miles north of Quapaw, Oklahoma, where the same tornado struck just before hitting the Kansas town.
Louisiana
A tornado touched down in rural northwest Louisiana around 3:15 a.m. on Monday, injuring one teenager and severely damaging his home. In northwest Louisiana, a teenager suffered minor injuries when a tornado touched down there early Monday. Bill Davis, a spokesman for the Bossier Parish Sheriff's Office, said the tornado hit around 3:15 a.m. Monday about six miles west of Plain Dealing in mostly a rural area. The teen suffered cuts and bruises and his home was heavily damaged.
Mississippi
At least nine people are dead from a tornado outbreak across the state. The Lee County Coroner told the Associated Press that a woman died in a car accident in Tupelo, but the cause of the crash was not yet known. Seven people were reported killed in Winston County, including a woman who perished in a day care center she owned in Louisville, said county Coroner Scott Gregory.
Search and rescue efforts were ongoing into the late evening and overnight hours across the state, the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency said.
Around 6:35 local time two large tornadoes were reported in the Jackson metro area, one south and one north, of the downtown Jackson area. According to the National Weather Service, heavy damage was reported north of Richland, Miss. Damage was also reported in Brandon, Miss., according to the Brandon Emergency Operations Center.
At about 4:30 p.m. local time, a tornado debris signature was spotted on radar moving toward Louisville. Shortly after that, reports of widespread damage were relayed by local authorities. Some of that damage included blown out windows and roof damage to the Winston Medical Center. Some 45 people were injured by the twisters. Four of those are listed in critical condition, including two children, according to Mississippi Emergency Management Agency (MEMA).
Just before 3 p.m. Central time on Monday, Tupelo was placed under a tornado emergency as a large tornado with a debris signature was spotted near the city. Shortly after the tornado passed through the city, damage photos began to surface showing destruction from the storm. Thirty people were injured in the tornado, but none of the injuries were life-threatening.
Tupelo mayor Jason Shelton told The Weather Channel that there is heavy damage in parts of the city, especially northern Tupelo. Preliminary surveys from the National Weather Service indicated that the tornado was at least an EF2. That could change as surveys continue.
Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant declared a state of emergency ahead of the Storm Prediction Center's declaration of a particularly dangerous situation for parts of the state. Gov. Bryant mobilized the National Guard Monday evening to help aid in relief efforts for all of the areas in Mississippi hit by tornadoes.
Nearly 19,000 people were without power across Mississippi at 1:30 am EDT as a result of the deadly storms.
Missouri
A large tornado was confirmed on live television Sunday night about 70 miles south of Kansas City on the Kansas/Missouri line in Linn and Bates counties.
North Carolina
After a round of tornadoes hit eastern North Carolina on Friday, killing an infant, the threat for severe weather returns Tuesday. For parts of the state, flooding from heavy rainfall will also be a concern.
Buncombe County authorities rescued a number of people from their homes as a creek flooded in Woodfin north of Asheville. Capt. Chris Dorsey with the Weaverville Fire Department said the rescue effort began shortly after 3 a.m. Tuesday. About 30 people were displaced when the creek overflowed, causing flooding of the homes, Dorsey said.
Boat rescues were conducted for three people and the fire department evacuated about 10 others. The water was up to 5 feet deep. Three people were taken to Mission Hospital in Asheville with minor injuries, Dorsey said. Jacob Aguilar said he and six family members had to leave their flooded home.
"Everybody was freaking out and waking me up to get out of the house," Aguilar said. "I couldn't believe what I was seeing."
Oklahoma
Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin declared a state of emergency Monday for Ottawa County following a tornado that struck Quapaw, killing at least one person and injuring six. Monday afternoon, an NWS survey crew rated the tornado as an EF2.
John L. Brown, 68, was killed after a concrete wall fell on his car, trapping him and his wife. The couple were driving through downtown Quapaw when the tornado struck. The two sought shelter in a parking lot, according to the Ottawa County Sheriff's Department, but high winds brought down a nearby wall onto their vehicle. Mr. Brown was pronounced dead at the scene. Mrs. Brown was rescued from the vehicle, treated at a nearby hospital and later released.
Fallin says the state is prepared to offer every resource available to assist with the cleanup, rebuilding and recovery. The town of about 900 residents suffered heavy damage from the tornado, Ottawa County Emergency Management Director Joe Dan Morgan said.
The tornado damaged or destroyed about 60 buildings in the town of 900, including Quapaw's volunteer fire department station and a bank, reported News9.com. Although cleanup and rescue efforts are ongoing, Ozarksfirst.com reported the town does not have electricity and that authorities are concerned about the water supply and have asked residents to conserve.
Tennessee
A tornado emergency was issued for Franklin, Lincoln and Moore counties in southern Tennessee after a tornado was spotted at around 8:30 p.m. local time. On Monday night, a powerful tornado hit Lincoln County, damaging homes and an elementary school. Two fatalities were reported to hospital officials in addition to a number of other minor injuries.
"We're still trying to evaluate the extent of the damage," Melissa Smiley of the Lincoln County Sheriff's Office told The Tennessean.
Lincoln County emergency managers told The Weather Channel a number of homes were destroyed, and the elementary school will likely have to be demolished.
Lincoln County schools will be closed Tuesday due to the storm damage, road conditions and concerns about flooding.
Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.
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