Severe thunderstorms and high winds over the weekend left at least five people dead in Oklahoma and Iowa, including an infant, as a series of tornadoes ripped through the Great Plains, authorities said.
As thunderstorms moved east on Sunday, more than four million people in parts of five states – Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Missouri and Texas – were affected. under a tornado watch, which means tornadoes are possible in the next few hours. There is also the threat of damage from wind and large hail, According to the Storm Forecast Center.
Tornadoes hit parts of Iowa on Friday and Oklahoma on Saturday. The cities of Sulfur, Holdenville and Ardmore, Okla., were hit the hardest, according to the National Weather Service.
Craig Carlsen, a spokesman for Pottawattamie County, said by phone Sunday that a man died in Minden, Iowa, on Saturday from injuries sustained during the storm.
Keli Cain, public affairs director for the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management, said Sunday that the state medical examiner has confirmed two storm-related deaths in Holdenville and one school. Another incident on Interstate 34, near Marietta.
At a news conference on Sunday, Governor Kevin Stitt of Oklahoma announced that a fourth person had died in Sulfur. At least 100 other people were injured statewide, the department said. Shelters and emergency kitchens were opened to provide shelter and food for displaced residents as local officials coordinated search and rescue efforts.
Hughes County Emergency Medical Services said Sunday that a man and an infant girl were among those killed in Holdenville.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency said in a briefing Sunday morning that at least 16 homes in Oklahoma were destroyed.
On Sunday, Mr. Stitt declared a state of emergency for 12 counties and toured Sulfur.
He describe The scene there was “devastating,” adding that seemingly every business downtown had been destroyed.
He said initial reports suggested a strong tornado “was blowing straight through downtown here and I haven’t seen such destruction since my time as governor.”
Video and photos from KOCO News television station shows businesses in downtown Sulfur was damaged or flattened, and cars were hit by flying debris.
Julie Jack, 64, owner of a women’s fashion store in Sulphur, said Sunday that her business was “completely destroyed and all the furniture in it was lost.”
She said that with the exception of a new hotel, “I would say every structure downtown is a loss.”
“It looks like a bomb was detonated,” she added.
Severe weather occurred a day later Tornadoes ripped through parts of Nebraska and Iowa and razed dozens of houses.
In Iowa, 270 homes and multiple structures were damaged or destroyed in Pottawattamie County, and about 25 homes in Shelby County were damaged or destroyed, according to FEMA.
According to the Weather Service, nearly 30 tornadoes were reported across the region from Saturday afternoon through early Sunday, including several Saturday evening in Kansas, Missouri and Texas.
Ryan Jewell, a forecaster at the National Weather Service’s Weather Prediction Center, said Saturday’s situation was complicated because there were so many storms.
“They started interacting and there was a lot of potential,” he said.
Friday’s tornadoes hit several areas in Nebraska and Iowa, where in addition to the dead, several people were injured as winds blew into the area, officials said.
At a news conference Saturday in Douglas County, Neb., where more than 150 homes were damaged, Chris Franks of the Weather Service described extensive damage from winds up to 165 mph .
“These are strong tornadoes, rare tornadoes,” he said, describing a system that started in the Lincoln area and another that formed over Eppley Airport in Omaha.
In Minden, Iowa, nearly 50 homes were completely destroyed, local officials said in a news release Sunday.
The weather service said it received more than 100 tornado report in at least five Great Plains states on Friday.
Gov. Jim Pillen of Nebraska said he visited several hard-hit areas. He called the experience “extremely sobering.”
Phil Enke, an elder at Harvest Alliance Church in Minden, said the place of worship was flattened during Friday’s storm. Mr. Enke, 65, went through scraps of wood and debris on Saturday afternoon looking for documents and photos he could save.
“We just try to create things that are irreplaceable,” Mr. Enke said.
“It’s a hassle and a mess, but you just have to pick up the pieces and move on,” he added.
Johnny Diaz And Livia Albeck-Ripka Report contributions.
