< p>Photo: Valley View, Texas. 05/26/2024
Forecasters warn of new storms in Ohio and Tennessee
Thunderstorms and tornadoes across the Southern Plains and Ozark Mountains, as of Monday afternoon killed at least 21 people in four states and destroyed hundreds of buildings.
Forecasters warn that the bad weather will continue, reports Reuters.
Over the past three days, at least eight people died in Arkansas, seven – in Texas, four – in Kentucky and two — in Oklahoma. State emergency services reported this.
Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear declared a state of emergency in the state on Monday morning. The National Weather Service has issued a severe thunderstorm warning for Atlanta and parts of Georgia, as well as several western counties in South Carolina.
"It was a tough night for our people.", – Beshear wrote Monday on Media Platform X. He later told a press briefing that devastating storms had hit nearly the entire state. The storms damaged 100 highways and roads, officials said.
At least seven people were killed, including two- and five-year-old children from the same family, and about 100 were injured Saturday night when a powerful tornado hit communities in northern Texas near the Oklahoma border, state Governor Greg Abbott said at a press conference on Sunday, May 26.
On Sunday evening, Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders said at least eight people had died as a result of the hurricanes in the state.
US President Joe Biden on Monday, May 27, expressed condolences to state governors over the deaths people, the White House said.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency is assessing the damage along with state and local counterparts.
President Biden has directed federal agencies to provide support to regional authorities as necessary.
Hundreds of thousands of Americans were without power Monday due to severe weather, according to the website PowerOutage.US. In Kentucky alone, more than 160,000 people are without power.
It could take days for power to be restored in some areas, Kentucky's governor said.
The weather service warned across the Ohio and Tennessee valleys. There will be new storms that will bring damaging winds, large hail and tornadoes, as well as heavy rains that can cause flash floods.
Prepared by: Sergey Daga