US Tornadoes: 21 Dead As Powerful Storms Ripped Through Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas And Kentucky; Here’s What We Now So Far

San Francisco: At least 20 people lost their lives as severe storms ravaged multiple US states, including Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Kentucky, during the Memorial Day weekend. The devastation was particularly severe in Texas, where a roadside travel stop and a community of mobile homes in Cooke County were destroyed, resulting in seven fatalities and over 100 injuries, as confirmed by Texas Governor Greg Abbot.

Kentucky: Five people died in Kentucky as a result of the severe weather, according to Gov. Andy Beshear. Video showed the aftermath of a tornado in Charleston with cars tossed into the piles of debris and the remains of houses. Teams from the National Weather Service are being sent to survey the tornado damage.

Alabama: One person was killed by a large tree that fell onto a residential building in Mountain Brook, according to the fire department. Storms brought wind gusts up to 70 miles per hour and large hail.

Texas: At least seven people were killed in the town of Valley View in Cooke County when severe storms struck Saturday night, Sheriff Ray Sappington said. Of those, a woman and two of her children were killed when a tornado struck their home. Laura Esparza and her children Marco, 10, and Miranda, 16, died after their trailer was thrown across a street, Esparza’s brother-in-law told CNN.

The tornado in Texas marked the deadliest in the state since 2015, with a preliminary EF-2 rating and winds of 135 mph. Governor Greg Abbot declared disaster emergencies in four counties to expedite response efforts.

Oklahoma: Two people died and several others were injured in the storms, according to officials. Survey teams from the National Weather Service found severe damage in Claremore, northeastern Oklahoma, indicating the tornado was at least a category EF3. Three horses had to be euthanized at Will Rogers Down, which was in the direct path of that tornado, according to Joe Lucas, a spokesperson for the state’s Thoroughbred Racing Association.

Arkansas: At least eight people were killed in severe weather that left large amounts of debris in parts of the state’s northwest, according to officials. It left houses with missing roofs and a lot of downed trees, according to Lori Arnold-Ellis, a spokesperson for the American Red Cross of Greater Arkansas.

Severe storms and tornadoes left nearly 400,000 people in Missouri, Arkansas, and Kentucky without power, according to poweroutage.us. Forecasters warned of the storms shifting eastwards, potentially affecting states like New York and Alabama.

An active weather weekend

Sunday was the most active severe storm day of the year. There were at least 622 preliminary reports of severe weather spanning from Wyoming to New Hampshire, according to Storm Prediction Center data. The previous high was 565 reports on May 8. Among Sunday’s storm reports were 14 tornadoes, including multiple tornado emergencies in Kentucky.

Heat warning

Meanwhile, more than 25 million people are under heat alerts, mainly across east and south Texas and central and southern Louisiana and Mississippi. Over the next two days, the heat index values could top 119 degrees in Laredo, Texas, and 113 degrees in Austin, and Houston.