Tornado touches down in metro-Little Rock, as rare ‘high risk’ storm alert issued for parts of Midwest and Mid-South
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Tornado touches down in Arkansas as millions across Midwest under tornado watch
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Large violent tornadoes were tearing through multiple states in the South and Midwest Friday, injuring dozens of people, toppling cars and ripping off roofs as meteorologists warned the danger will continue into the night.
At least two dozen people were hospitalized in the aftermath of a tornado that ripped through metro-Little Rock, which also left behind extensive property damage, Mayor Frank Scott Jr. said.
More than 89,000 people were without power across the state late Friday evening, according to poweroutage.us.
Further east, residents of the small town of Wynne were trapped inside their homes Friday evening after “significant damage” in the area, said Rebekah Magnus, with the state’s emergency management division.
The town was “basically cut in half by damage from east to west,” Wynne Mayor Jennifer Hobbs told CNN Friday evening. “We are still in triage mode,” the mayor added, explaining crews were still working to determine the severity of the damage and any potential injuries.
Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders declared a state of emergency, saying the state will “spare no resource” in responding and recovering from the storm and activated the state’s National Guard.
The same tornado that moved through Wynne prompted a tornado emergency in neighboring Tennessee. The National Weather Service confirmed a large, destructive twister moved through Covington, about 40 miles northeast of Memphis.
A particularly dangerous tornado watch was also in effect for northwestern Alabama, northern Mississippi and western and central Tennessee, including for the city of Nashville until 1 a.m. CDT, according to the Storm Prediction Center. The tornadoes that develop could have an EF-2 or higher intensity, with destructive winds of more than 111 mph, the center said. And the storms could include baseball-sized hail.
The latest round of severe weather comes a week after powerful storms pummeled the Southeast and killed at least 26 people. An overnight tornado also leveled nearly the entire community of Rolling Fork, Mississippi, where estimated maximum winds of 170 mph roared.
More than 30 million under threat for tornadoes
The Storm Prediction Center issued a Level 5 out of 5 “high risk” for severe weather – the highest risk level there is when it comes to severe storms – for two regions. One region stretches from parts of eastern Arkansas, southwestern Tennessee and northern Mississippi while another includes parts of southeastern Iowa, northwestern Illinois, and northeastern Missouri and Iowa City in Iowa.
Track the storms here
The last time a Level 5 high risk was issued was on March 25, 2021, when powerful storms and tornadoes killed at least six people and ripped apart communities in the Southeast.
More than 27 million people were under tornado watches Friday evening, stretching from southern Arkansas to northern Iowa until 8 p.m. CDT and parts of northeast Texas, northwest Louisiana and far southern Oklahoma until 9:00 p.m. CDT.
Shreveport, Louisiana, and Tyler, Texas, are included in the tornado watch.
A reported tornado near Ottumwa, Iowa, Friday afternoon, caused structural damage but has no injuries were immediately reported, local emergency management officials said.
A possible tornado was seen Friday evening passing a local TV station’s stationary camera in Solon, Iowa, blowing debris up in the air.
“Our roof just got lifted off,” KCRG Chief Meteorologist Joe Winters told viewers, referring to the building the camera was mounted on. Seconds later, a roof from another building was seen blowing into the air.
“That’s how quick it happens,” Winters said. “That’s why when warnings are issued, you need to take them seriously and get into a safe place immediately.”
A tornado watch was also in effect for Northern Illinois, Northwest Indiana, Southern Wisconsin and Lake Michigan until 10 p.m. CDT, according to the Storm Prediction Center.
Know the difference between a tornado watch and tornado warning
“The danger remains high, especially across middle Tennessee, northern Alabama, northern Mississippi and northern Illinois,” CNN Meteorologist Gene Norman said. “We’re especially concerned about Nashville and Chicago. Whenever there are storms at night, it is more dangerous, and these storms are moving very quickly, leaving people little time to get to safety once they hear about a warning.”
“So everyone in the threat zone should charge their cell phones and pay attention to weather alerts,” Norman added.
‘Worst forecast I’ve ever seen’
At least three states have activated emergency plans because of the weather.
Missouri Gov. Mike Parson said Friday he has activated the Missouri State Emergency Operations Plan as parts of the state began getting hit by the storm.
“We want to ensure all necessary state resources are available if extreme disruptions and damage were to affect our communities,” he said.
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear has issued a state of emergency ahead of severe weather headed for the state. Kentuckians are expected to be sheltered by 5 p.m. CST.
“This is the worst forecast that I’ve seen as Governor,” Beshear said. “I am declaring a state of emergency so that we can be prepared.”
CNN’s Andy Rose, Rob Shackelford, Aya Elamroussi, Paradise Afshar, Sara Smart, Jennifer Gray, Alaa Elassar contributed to this report.
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