At least 16 people killed as relentless storms pound midSouth U.S.
Apr 06, 2025
At least 16 people have been killed by persistent severe storms across the South and into the Midwest, authorities said Sunday.
Ten deaths have been recorded in Tennessee alone as a series of thunderstorms and tornadoes have battered the state over the past few days.
Flash flood warnings in parts of
Kentucky, Mississippi and Tennessee extended into Sunday morning with tornado warnings issued as well for areas in Mississippi and Arkansas.
Floodwaters inundate homes and vehicles in Shannon Hills, Ark., Saturday, April 5, 2025, as a second day of storms brought widespread flooding to the region. (Colin Murphey/Arkansas Democrat-Gazette via AP)
“Life-threatening, catastrophic, and potentially historic flash flood event continues across the Lower Ohio Valley into the Mid-South,” the National Weather Service warned Sunday. “A couple rounds of significant severe weather [is] expected from the Mid-South through the Southeast with very large hail, damaging winds and strong tornadoes possible.”
All 10 deaths in Tennessee occurred in the western part of the state between Memphis and Nashville, according to the Nashville Tennessean.
Parked vehicles along Belvedere Street are stranded by flooding as heavy rain falls, Saturday, April 5, 2025, in Memphis, Tenn. (Patrick Lantrip/Daily Memphian via AP)
In Arkansas, a 5-year-old was killed Saturday by storms in the capital of Little Rock. The child was the youngest reported victim of the storm system, which also killed a 9-year-old boy in Kentucky who was swept away by floodwaters.
Throughout last week, a series of storms settled over the same area of the mid-South, stretching across Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas and Mississippi. The repeated pattern was caused by strong wind shear, an unstable atmosphere and significant moisture from the Gulf of Mexico.
Carole Smith walks through her flooded home on Saturday in Frankfort, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)
The pattern was expected to break up on Sunday, with rains finally pushing east toward Georgia and the Florida Panhandle.
“Similar to the flooding threat, the risk for severe weather also shifts eastward Sunday into Monday, targeting parts of the southern Mid-Atlantic and Southeast,” the National Weather Service said.
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