Dangerous severe storms again hitting Midwest, South
Source: AP
By SCOTT McFETRIDGE and SEAN MURPHY an hour ago
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — People still sorting through the wreckage of their homes after deadly weather hit over the weekend braced for another wave of strong storms, including tornadoes, that began rolling into parts of the Midwest and South beginning Tuesday evening. Officials warned residents to have shelter ready before going to sleep.
“This could be a night to just set up down in the basement to be safe,” said Tom Philip, a meteorologist in Davenport, Iowa.
The National Weather Service on Tuesday evening began issuing tornado warnings in Iowa and Illinois and said a confirmed twister was spotted southwest of Chicago near Bryant, Illinois. No damage was immediately reported.
The storms were expected to hammer some areas hit by severe weather and possibly dozens of tornadoes just days ago that killed at least 32 people, meaning more misery for those whose homes were destroyed in Arkansas, Iowa and Illinois. Dangerous conditions Tuesday also could stretch into parts of Missouri, southwestern Oklahoma and northeastern Texas. Farther south and west, fire danger remained high.
Missouri tornado kills multiple people, sows destruction
Source: AP
By JIM SALTER and SCOTT McFETRIDGE 3 minutes ago
ST. LOUIS (AP) — A large tornado tore through southeastern Missouri before dawn on Wednesday, causing widespread destruction and killing multiple people as a broad swath of the Midwest and South braced for further storms that could spawn additional twisters and hail.
The tornado touched down around 3:30 a.m. and moved through a rural area of Bollinger County, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of St. Louis, said Sgt. Clark Parrott of the Missouri State Highway Patrol. He said it caused “multiple injuries and multiple deaths,” but he didn’t specify how many or say precisely where they occurred.
“The damage is pretty widespread. It’s just heartbreaking to see it,” Parrott said.
He said said a search and rescue operation involving multiple agencies was underway and that crews had to use chainsaws to cutback trees and brush to reach some homes.
More rain is in the forecast after substantial downpours inundated Fort Lauderdale and parts of South Florida in a 1-in-1,000 year rainfall event, leading to a flash flood emergency in Broward County that has prompted emergency rescues, forced drivers to abandon cars, shuttered schools and shut down the airport through Thursday morning.
While the rain Thursday won’t reach nearly the amounts that fell on Wednesday, it will be problematic and create additional flooding, the National Weather Service said. Gusty winds, small hail and even isolated tornadoes are possible.
Between 14 and 20 inches of rain have drenched the greater Fort Lauderdale metro area since Wednesday afternoon,according to a Thursday morning update from the National Weather Service office in Miami. The deluge is the “most severe flooding that I’ve ever seen,” one mayor said.
Snowmelt spurs flooding from Southwest to Rockies, 2 rescues
Source: AP
today
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) — A rapid spring snowmelt after an unusually wet winter is unleashing flooding from the Southwest to the Rockies, causing residents there and in the Upper Midwest to evacuate or stock up on sandbags amid surging creeks and rivers.
In New Mexico, emergency crews rescued people from at least two vehicles from high water Thursday night in Jemez Pueblo north of Albuquerque, the National Weather Service said.
But there were no immediate reports of any deaths of serious injuries. A flood warning was in effect for communities along the Jemez River into next week.
In Flagstaff, Arizona, neighbors on one street have been working side by side since Tuesday with shovels to stave off floodwaters from their homes.
Late-season storm brings more snow to the Sierra Nevada
Source: AP
24 minutes ago
TRUCKEE, Calif. (AP) — The winter that wouldn’t quit showed up again in the Sierra Nevada region of California and Nevada on Tuesday.
The fast-moving, blustery storm wasn’t expected to last long, but it was enough to require chain controls on some trans-Sierra highways and add to staggering snowfall totals left by an exceptional series of winter storms.
“A blast back to some wintry weather today with wind and snowfall,” the Mammoth Mountain ski resort wrote on its web page. The early morning temperature was just 18 degrees (-8 Celsius).
Like most Sierra resorts, Mammoth doesn’t need anymore snow after recording 705 inches (17.9 meters) at its main lodge and 885 inches (22.5 meters) at its summit.
At least two killed as tornadoes, severe storms sweep through central U.S.
APRIL 20, 2023 / 6:32 AM / CBS/AP
Strong storms including tornadoes, winds and hail moved through parts of the central U.S. on Wednesday, killing at least two people, causing injuries, destroying homes and leaving thousands without power.
The National Weather Service began issuing tornado and severe thunderstorm warnings Wednesday evening in Oklahoma, Kansas and Iowa, with forecasters warning people to find shelter. ... Central Oklahoma saw multiple tornadoes, including one that raced through the communities of Cole and Shawnee Wednesday night.
Authorities said at least two people were killed in Cole, a small town in McClain County some 25 miles south of Oklahoma City, and there were injuries ranging from cuts and bruises to some requiring hospitalization, although the numbers weren't immediately clear as hundreds of people fanned out in search operations.
A McClain County sheriff's deputy told CBS Oklahoma City affiliate KWTV that, based on the damage he was seeing in Cole and the area around it, it was reasonable to expect more fatalities. ... But the station noted that a 90-year-old grandmother made it through even though a twister hit her home in Shawnee.
One in three people on earth are suffering under a “monster Asian heatwave” with temperature records broken across a dozen countries.
The searing heat has spread across large parts of south and southeast Asia in recent weeks, and impacted more than a dozen countries including India, China, Thailand, Laos, Bangladesh, Turkmenistan, Japan and Korea.
The temperature hit a scorching 44.6 degrees Celsius in the western province of Tak, Thailand this week, the hottest temperature ever recorded in the country. Thailand’s Meteorological Department warned that the baking weather would continue into next week.
Meanwhile, Laos broke its all-time high temperature record two days in a row. On Thursday, 42.9C was recorded in Sainyabuli agro surpassing 42.7C in Luang Prabang on Wednesday.
Yosemite valley to close over flood threat as snowpack melts
Source: AP
2 hours ago
YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, Calif. (AP) — Much of the famed valley at California’s Yosemite National Park will be temporarily closed starting Friday due to a forecast of flooding as rising temperatures melt the Sierra Nevada’s massive snowpack.
Park officials said Tuesday that the eastern section of Yosemite Valley will stay shut at least until May 3. Reservations for campgrounds and lodging in the eastern valley will automatically be canceled and refunded.
Other sections including western Yosemite Valley will remain open, officials said. Day hikers who have purchased wilderness permits for areas that will be off limits can have them rescheduled for alternate trailheads as space allows.
Spring weather is quickly melting huge amounts of snow that accumulated in mountains from a series of epic winter storms.
Tornado flips cars, damages homes in coastal Florida city
Source: AP
an hour ago
PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — A tornado touched down in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, on Saturday as a powerful storm system brought intense rain and powerful winds to the state, overturning cars, damaging homes and snapping tree branches.
The National Weather Service in Miami said the tornado hit late Saturday afternoon with winds of 100 mph (160 kph) near Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center and headed northeast toward the coast.
Storm damage forced authorities in the coastal city to close major roadways in the city as workers cleared debris and inspected wreckage. Images from the scene showed cars flipped over on top of each other, cracked tree limbs resting on vehicles and homes, as well as other debris littering streets.
The Palm Beach Gardens Police Department has not reported any major injuries or fatalities. A spokeswoman for the city said officials have deactivated emergency protocols and were working through lingering issues Sunday.
Tornados in South Florida has been a thing for a while though not as consistent as the past decade. The Palm Beach one even flipped cars as an EF2 so an EF3 in Virginia a place not expecting them with no warning must have been something else.
One dead as tornado hits south Texas town near the Gulf coast
Source: AP
an hour ago
PORT ISABEL, Texas (AP) — At least one person was killed when a tornado struck a town on the Gulf coast near the southernmost tip of Texas, damaging dozens of homes and knocking down power lines early Saturday, authorities said.
At least 10 people were also hospitalized, two in critical condition, said Cameron County Emergency Management Coordinator Tom Hushen. The storm hit the unincorporated community of Laguna Heights near South Padre Island at about 4 a.m.
Hushen said there are “multiple minor injuries” such as cuts and bruises. The tornado “caused significant damage to residences ... we have 40-60 damaged homes,” some heavily damaged, he said.
National Weather Service investigators at the scene have confirmed it was a tornado and are working to determine the wind speed and strength, Hushen said.