At least 19 people die in storms in four states as series of deadly weather phenomena continues

Violent storms killed at least 19 people, injured hundreds and left a wide trail of destruction in Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Kentucky, destroying homes and a rest area where dozens sought shelter in a bathroom during the latest deadly storm to hit the central United States.

The storms caused the worst damage in a region stretching from northern Dallas to the northwest corner of Arkansas, and the system threatened to bring even more severe weather to other parts of the Midwest. On Monday, forecasters said, the greatest danger would shift eastward, affecting a broad swath of the country from Alabama to near New York City.

Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear declared a state of emergency in a post on social media platform X early Monday, citing “multiple reports of storm damage and tornadoes.”

At least two people have died in Kentucky from falling trees, authorities said. One death was confirmed early Monday in Mercer County — one person was pronounced dead and a second person was hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries. The second such death was reported in Louisville, where a man died on Sunday, police said. Louisville Mayor Craig Greenburg confirmed on social media that the death was storm-related.

Seven deaths were reported in Valley View in Cooke County, Texas, near the Oklahoma border, where a tornado ripped through a rural area near a mobile home park on Saturday night, Texas Governor Greg Abbott said at a news conference on Sunday. Two children, ages 2 and 5, were among the dead, and three family members were found dead in a home, according to the county sheriff.

The storms also killed two people in Oklahoma and destroyed homes. Guests at an outdoor wedding were among those injured, and eight people died in Arkansas.

As of 6:30 a.m. EDT, about 189,000 homes and businesses in Kentucky, 63,000 in Arkansas, 6,000 in Texas and 3,000 in Oklahoma were without power, according to Poweroutage.us.

In Texas, about 100 people were injured and more than 200 homes and buildings destroyed, Abbott said in front of a devastated rest area near Valley View, a small agricultural community. The area was among the hardest hit, with winds reaching an estimated 135 mph (217 kph), officials said.

“The hopes and dreams of Texas families and small businesses have literally been shattered by one storm after another,” said Abbott, whose state has experienced several consecutive severe weather events, including storms that killed eight people. in Houston earlier this month.

Abbot signed an amended severe weather disaster declaration on Sunday to add Denton, Montague, Cooke and Collin to the list of counties already under a disaster declaration as a result of storms and flooding in late April.

Hugo Parra, who lives in Farmers Branch, north of Dallas, said he rode out the storm with 40 to 50 people in the rest area’s bathroom. The storm ripped off the building’s roof and walls, damaged metal beams and left battered cars in the parking lot.

“A firefighter came to check on us and said, ‘You were very lucky,'” Parra said. “The best way to describe it is: The wind was trying to blow us out of the bathrooms.”

Several people were taken by ambulance and helicopter to hospitals in Denton County, also north of Dallas.

No further fatalities are expected and no one has been reported missing in Texas, Abbott said. However, emergency services are conducting another round of searches just to be on the safe side.

In Pilot Point near Dallas, a woman signaled an SOS with her keychain after a tornado swept through, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported.

The newspaper reported that the tornado overturned Amber Bryan’s mobile home and trapped her inside. “Thank God, I only have a few bruises, but nothing broken,” the newspaper quoted her as saying. “It all happened so fast. I just said, ‘Lord, take me and my pets in your arms and let’s get through this.'”

Others told CBS Texas how they survived when a funnel roared through a mobile home park in a marina.

Across the state of Arkansas, eight people died, Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders confirmed in a press conference Sunday evening. An emergency official said two deaths were due to circumstances related to the storm but not directly caused by the weather. One person suffered a heart attack and another did not get enough oxygen due to a power outage.

The fatalities include a 26-year-old woman whose body was found outside a destroyed home in Olvey, a small community in Boone County, according to Daniel Bolen of the county’s emergency management office. One person died in Benton County, and two other bodies were found in Marion County, officials said.

In Oklahoma, two people died in Mayes County, east of Tulsa, officials said.

Climate change and world-changing weather

The destruction continued a grim month of deadly storms in the center of the country.

Tornadoes in Iowa last week at least five people died and dozens injured.

The deadly hurricanes occurred during a historically bad tornado season, at a time when Climate change contributes to the severity of storms around the world. In April, the country experienced the second-highest number of tornadoes on record.

Meteorologists and authorities issued urgent warnings to seek shelter as the storms moved across the region late Saturday and Sunday. “If you are in the path of this storm, seek shelter immediately!” the National Weather Service office in Norman, Oklahoma, posted on X.

Harold Brooks, a senior scientist at the National Severe Storms Laboratory in Norman, said a persistent pattern of warm, moist air is responsible for the series of tornadoes over the past two months.

On Sunday, residents awoke to see overturned cars and collapsed garages. Some residents walked back and forth, assessing the damage. Nearby, neighbors sat on the foundation of a destroyed house.

In Valley View, near the rest stop, the storms ripped roofs off homes and blew out windows. Clothing, insulation, plastic and other debris were wrapped around the miles of barbed wire fence that surrounds pastureland in the rural area.

Kevin Dorantes, 20, was in nearby Carrollton when he learned the tornado was heading toward the Valley View neighborhood where he lived with his father and brother. He called the two and told them to take shelter in the windowless bathroom, where they rode out the storm and survived unharmed.

As Dorantes wandered through the neighborhood of downed power lines and destroyed homes, he came across a family whose home was reduced to rubble. The father and son were trapped under rubble and friends and neighbors rushed to free them, Dorantes said.

“They were conscious but seriously injured,” Dorantes said.

Impassable roads and downed power lines in Oklahoma also led officials in the city of Claremore, near Tulsa, to announce on social media that the city was on “lockdown” due to the damage.

The system that caused the recent storm is expected to move eastward over the remainder of the holiday weekend.

The Indianapolis 500 started four hours late after a strong storm hit the area and forced Indianapolis Motor Speedway officials to evacuate about 125,000 race fans.

More severe storms were forecast in Illinois, Missouri, Kentucky and Tennessee.

Meteorologists expect the threat of severe weather to move to North Carolina and Virginia on Monday.