As per reported By US NEWS – A series of powerful storms in the central and southern United States over the Memorial Day weekend killed at least 22 people and left a path of destroyed homes, businesses, and power outages in its aftermath.
During the Memorial Day holiday weekend, a string of strong storms ravaged the central and southern United States, killing at least 22 people and leaving a path of devastated houses, businesses, and power outages in its wake.
The catastrophic storms, which were located directly north of a brutal early-season heat wave that broke records from south Texas to Florida, claimed lives in Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Kentucky.
Forecasters cautioned millions of those spending the holiday outside to keep an eye on the skies, stating that the severe weather may move to the East Coast later on Monday. There was a tornado watch in effect for Maryland and North Carolina.
Five people had perished in Kentucky, according to Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, who had earlier issued a state of emergency, during a press conference on Monday. According to the governor’s office, the fifth fatality was a 54-year-old man who suffered a heart attack while pruning downed trees in western Kentucky’s Caldwell County.
A series of powerful storms in the central and southern United States
The death toll of 22 also included seven deaths in Cooke County, Texas, from a Saturday tornado that tore through a mobile home park, officials said, and eight deaths across Arkansas.
Authorities reported two fatalities in Oklahoma’s Mayes County, east of Tulsa. Among those hurt were attendees at an outdoor wedding.
The little Kentucky hamlet of Charleston was directly struck on Sunday night by a tornado that, according to the governor, looked to be on the ground for 40 miles (64 kilometres). As a result, the population was left with destroyed homes and no power.
According to Rob Linton, a Charleston resident and the fire chief of neighbouring Dawson Springs, which was devastated by a tornado in 2021, “It’s a big mess.” Trees falling all around. Homes were moved. There are no power wires. Not a single utility, not even power or water.
According to county Emergency Management Director Nick Bailey, some of the rural Hopkins County regions that were affected by the tornado that struck the area in 2021 near the town of Barnsley saw damage once more on Sunday night.
Bailey stated, “A lot of people were just starting to put their lives back together when this happened.” “The houses, the location, and everything are almost the same.”
Beshear has made numerous trips to his father’s hometown to attend ceremonies where those who lost everything were given the keys to their new residences.
The visits followed 81 fatalities in Kentucky after a sequence of tornadoes that occurred on a horrific night in December 2021.
Regarding the storms over Memorial Day weekend, Beshear remarked, “It could have been much worse.” “With everything we’ve been through, the people of Kentucky are very weather aware.”
Approximately 125,000 customers in Kentucky were among the over 400,000 people without power in the eastern United States on Monday afternoon. PowerOutage.us claims that earlier in the day, at least 10,000 outages were reported in twelve states.
A large portion of the eastern United States, extending from Alabama to New York, is under the highest alert for severe weather on Monday.
The relatives of the deceased received condolences from President Joe Biden. According to him, the government Emergency Management Agency is assessing the damage on the ground and has been in touch with the governors to find out what kind of government assistance they could require.
In the middle of the country, tornadoes and other severe weather have plagued us for a bleak month.
Last week, tornadoes in Iowa caused numerous injuries and at least five fatalities. Earlier last month, storms in Houston claimed eight lives.
The deadly twisters and intense thunderstorms have occurred during a season that has historically been poor for tornadoes, and at a time when global climate change is increasing the intensity of storms. The second-highest number of tornadoes on record for the nation occurred in April.
The spate of tornadoes over the previous two months, according to Harold Brooks, a senior scientist at the National Severe Storms Laboratory in Norman, is the result of a consistent pattern of warm, wet air.
The northern edge of a heat dome is surrounded by warm, humid air, which brings temperatures normally associated with the height of summer into late May.
In several areas of south Texas on Monday, the heat index—which measures how hot it feels to the human body by combining humidity and air temperature—approached triple digits.
Dallas and San Antonio were also expected to see extreme heat. On Monday, Melbourne and Ft. Pierce in Florida established new daily records. Both reached 36.7 C or 98 F. On Sunday, Miami recorded a record high of 96 F (35.5 C).
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Source
USNEWS.COM
