Deadly Tornadoes Strike South, Historic Floods Expected \ Newslooks \ Washington DC \ Mary Sidiqi \ Evening Edition \ Severe tornadoes tore through parts of the South and Midwest, killing at least six and flattening homes. Forecasters warn of “life-threatening” flash flooding in the coming days. Rescue teams and emergency services are mobilizing as historic rainfall targets millions across several states.
Tornado Damage and Flood Threat Quick Looks
- Tornadoes kill at least six in Tennessee, Indiana, and Missouri
- Arkansas farm towns suffer extensive damage and emotional toll
- Dwight and Rhonda Qualls’ family farm hit hard in Arkansas
- Over 90 million at risk for extreme weather from Texas to Maine
- Flash flooding expected in Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, and more
- Nashville already seeing rescues amid rising floodwaters
- Forecast warns of once-in-a-generation rainfall across Mississippi Valley
- FEMA mobilizing supplies as storms continue through Saturday
- Strong wind shear, Gulf moisture fueling dangerous system
- Memphis, Louisville, and cargo hubs could face disruptions
Deep Look
Standing amid the bent and broken steel of what was once his family’s working farmland in northeast Arkansas, Danny Qualls watched as loved ones helped him begin to clean up the aftermath of a powerful tornado that flattened the home where he spent his childhood. It was just one piece of a vast trail of destruction stretching from Oklahoma to Indiana as a powerful wave of storms tore across the central U.S. this week—storms that are expected to intensify in the coming days with catastrophic rainfall and life-threatening flash floods.
For the Qualls family, the emotional weight is as heavy as the physical damage. “My husband has been extremely tearful and emotional,” said Rhonda Qualls. “But he also knows that we have to do the work. He was in shock last night, cried himself to sleep.”
The tornadoes that struck Wednesday into early Thursday left at least six confirmed dead across Tennessee, Missouri, and Indiana. One Tennessee man and his teenage daughter were killed when their home was destroyed. Another fatality came when a man’s truck hit downed power lines in Indiana. In Arkansas, powerful winds launched debris nearly 25,000 feet into the air, equivalent to the cruising altitude of a jetliner.
Tennessee Governor Bill Lee, visiting hard-hit areas like Selmer, described the losses in somber terms. “The devastation is enormous. What’s most difficult about it is, you know that those are lives destroyed,” he said. “In some cases, true life lost, but in other cases, everything people owned, up in trees.”
And the threat is far from over.
Forecasters from the National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center are warning of a multiday severe weather event with the potential for historic rainfall and flash flooding. More than 90 million people, from Texas to Maine, remain under threat as storm systems develop and move across the region like freight trains—repeatedly passing over the same vulnerable areas.
The bullseye of the storm is focused along the Mississippi River Valley, including the 1.3 million residents in and around Memphis, Tennessee. Meteorologists say up to a foot of rain could fall in the coming days, with the possibility of “once-in-a-generation to once-in-a-lifetime” flooding events.
In Nashville, where rainfall already overwhelmed roads, the fire department reported that overnight tornado warnings had even drained some city sirens’ batteries. Emergency workers are conducting water rescues, and sandbagging operations are underway throughout the state.
Across Kentucky, 25 state highways were reported flooded, with Governor Andy Beshear warning that flash flooding could hit regions not typically prone to such disasters. In mountainous rural areas, runoff from heavy rain can funnel dangerously fast into low-lying hollows. Less than four years ago, dozens died in similar conditions in eastern Kentucky.
The risk extends to logistics as well. Major shipping hubs in Memphis and Louisville may face delays as rising waters threaten roads, rails, and warehouses. “We’re looking at possible supply chain interruptions if the flooding reaches distribution centers,” said AccuWeather chief meteorologist Jonathan Porter.
The source of this extreme weather lies in a volatile blend of meteorological conditions: unseasonably warm temperatures, high moisture streaming in from the Gulf of Mexico, strong wind shear, and an unstable atmosphere—all of which combine to produce violent, sustained storm cells.
Tornado damage continues to unfold. In Selmer, Tennessee, three tornadoes are believed to have touched down, leaving homes reduced to splinters and businesses gutted. The shell of a used car dealership stood roofless, its contents strewn across nearby lots. Willie Barnes, a resident, barely made it into a bathroom with his wife before their home was destroyed. “Thank God we came out without a scratch,” he said.
Arkansas reported damage in at least 22 counties, with Lake City suffering some of the worst destruction. A tornado with winds peaking at 150 mph tore through homes, brick buildings, and highways, sending vehicles flying and stripping roofs from houses.
Mississippi was also hit hard, with at least 60 homes damaged, according to the state’s emergency management office. In Ballard County, Kentucky, four people were injured after taking shelter in a vehicle beneath a church carport—a reminder of how few options some residents have when disaster strikes.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is on high alert, preparing to deploy food, water, cots, and generators. Emergency teams are also staging water rescue units across the storm zone, anticipating worsening conditions through Saturday.
This relentless system is not only straining infrastructure and emergency services but testing the resilience of communities already battered by multiple disasters in recent years. As search and rescue operations continue and more rain looms, residents across the Midwest and South are bracing for what could be one of the most destructive and prolonged storm events in recent memory.
Deadly Tornadoes Strike Deadly Tornadoes Strike
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