Terrible storm threats on Monday stretched all the way from North Carolina to Philadelphia, severe tornado-spawning thunderstorms battered the Southeast. At least two people are dead and over 400,000 homes and businesses are without power.
The New York Times reported that one person died after severe storms slammed Martin County, in southern Indiana. Monty Wolf, Martin County Emergency Management director, told The New York Times that another person had been injured and rescuers are still looking for others who might need assistance.
Police and the local National Weather Service said that a 55-year-old man in Atlanta died Sunday night after being hit by a tree falling during stormy weather.
Residents in Bargersville were warned that they might be without electricity for up to two days due to a possible tornado.
PowerOutage.us reports that power outages continue to be a problem in a large part of the South. As of Monday afternoon, more than 90 000 customers were without power each in Tennessee and Arkansas. In both Kentucky and Michigan, around 50,000 customers had no power.
More than 90,000,000 people face severe weather on Monday as the storm system moves east. The mid-Atlantic region and the Northeast are at a Level 3 enhanced risk, with multiple thunderstorms possible in the afternoon. Philadelphia, Baltimore Washington, DC, and Raleigh in North Carolina are all included in this enhanced risk zone.
New York City is a Level 2 of 5, while Charlotte, North Carolina, and Columbia, South Carolina are Level 1 marginal risks. Boston, Atlanta, and Montgomery, Alabama are Level 1 marginal risks. Through Monday evening, damaging winds and hail will be the main threats. Tornadoes are also possible.
From western New York to North Carolina, severe thunderstorm watches are in effect for today’s afternoon and evening.
On Monday, a large hailstorm, with a diameter of up to 2 inches, is expected in parts of South Dakota and Wyoming, as well as the central Carolinas.
The main threat to the area is damaging winds. This includes areas from Oklahoma and Mississippi and parts of Texas and Oklahoma Panhandle into New Mexico.
The storm system that hit the United States on Sunday generated nearly 400 storm reports, including four tornado reports, 280 reports of wind, and more than one hundred hail events.
FlightAware.com reports that thousands of flights have been delayed or canceled on Monday as the storm system passes across the US.
Storms are expected as more than 40 million people, from Arizona to Alabama, suffer under a heatwave that is predicted to continue and spread through the holiday week of July 4th.
Weather Prediction Center: The heatwave that will spread from Arizona to Texas will have different effects on each area. “Higher air temperatures are expected in deserts and western Texas; lower temperatures, but with higher humidity, and heat indexes, in east Texas. Both of these factors increase the risk of heat-related illness, especially as heat waves last longer,” they said.
In the deserts of west Texas, temperatures are expected to reach above 110 degrees on Monday. Humidity in east Texas is forecast to make it feel even warmer. Some places could feel or reach 120 degrees.
At least two deaths in Texas, where temperatures reached as high as 119 degrees Fahrenheit on Friday, were caused by the extreme heat.
This week, the dangerous heat will continue to spread across South-central Texas and into neighboring states in the Central Plains as well as the Middle and Lower Mississippi Valley. The prediction center stated that “many areas outside of the south and south-central Texas (will) experience the most significant heat this season so far.”
Over the next six days, more than 90 records for afternoon high temperatures could be broken from Texas to Mississippi Valley and Florida. Over the next week, temperatures will also be warm, with 180 possible records for warm lows.
The prediction center stated that “there may be a greater danger than in a normal heat event due to the persistence of low nighttime temperatures near or above record levels and high heat index readings.”
Bargersville Fire Chief Eric Funkhouser stated that a severe storm in Bargersville had left a three-mile path of destruction.
Around 4:15 pm, one of Bargersville Fire Houses “witnessed” the tornado just north of its firehouse. Then reports of collapsed homes and other damage began to arrive in the area. Funkhouser confirmed this.
The tornado “caused severe damage to 75 homes,” Funkhouser stated, adding that the storm “toppled the apartment complex which was under construction.”
According to the chief of fire, there were no serious injuries reported in Bargersville by Sunday evening.
Funkhouser stated that this is the second tornado in Johnson County to have hit within the past three months. It’s amazing that two tornadoes have hit Johnson County in such a short time. We can only hope that there are minor injuries.
Social media videos showed a funnel cloud tearing through buildings while debris flew all around. Later, the roofs of several houses were ripped off.
We are almost certain that it was a twister based on the pictures and videos we have seen. On Sunday, Meteorologist Joseph Nield of the National Weather Service Indianapolis said that a team would be sent to make a definitive determination.
Bargersville, located in Johnson County, is 17 miles south-southwest of Indianapolis.
In Tennessee’s south, powerful winds have damaged trees and blown down structures.
Photos from the Millington Fire Department show that multiple planes were flipped over at an airport located in Millington. This is about 17 miles northeastern of Memphis. The department also reported that multiple buildings were damaged in the surrounding area.
