A regional outbreak of severe storms and possible tornadoes swept across the South on Wednesday and would continue into parts of Georgia and the Carolinas on Thursday, according to the National Weather Service.
According to Bunting, head of forecasting operations at the service’s Storm Forecasting Center, warned Wednesday afternoon across Mississippi and Alabama. There were reports Wednesday of damaged homes and farms in Wayne County, Miss., And wind damage to structures and trees in Sumter County, Ala.
Several dozen thunderstorms have occurred in the southeastern United States, Mr. Bunting said. “We expect them to get stronger and more intense as we move through the next few hours well into the night,” he added.
He said he expects each thunderstorm to yield one tornado. The storms would produce winds of more than 100 miles per hour, as well as hail ranging from golf ball to baseball.
About 38,000 people lost power in Mississippi, Louisiana and Alabama on Wednesday night, according to PowerOutage.us, which collects live power data from utilities across the United States.
On Thursday, the storms could continue to deliver tornadoes, wind damage and heavy hail in parts of Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina, the Weather Service said.
The warning for a second day of powerful storms came after the Weather Service did so reached out a “particularly dangerous situation” tornado watch for parts of Louisiana, Arkansas and Mississippi on Wednesday until 7 p.m., indicating “a potential for multiple strong long-distance tornadoes.”
More than 2.7 million people were at high risk on Wednesday due to the storms, mostly in Mississippi and Alabama, with another 5.6 million people at moderate risk. The Weather Service said Wednesday night that the potential for significant tornadoes continues, with many of the biggest risk in Alabama.
Alabama Government Kay Ivey issued a state of emergency on Tuesday ahead of the storms to ‘ensure that we are ready to act in any way. ”
Jackson, Miss .; Birmingham, Ala .; and Tallulah, La., was among the cities that carried the storm, the Weather Service said.
A winter storm hit Jackson in February, leaving more than 70 percent of the city’s water customers under a water-boiled notice for weeks. The notice was lifted last week for well water customers and Wednesday for surface water customers. The storm this week could threaten the city’s water systems again.
Another tornado watch has been issued for parts of Oklahoma, Missouri and Arkansas until 8:00 p.m. Wednesday, warning of lime size, possible tornadoes and isolated gusts up to 65 miles per hour.
“This event is really just going on,” he said. Bunting said, adding, “It’s going to be a long night.”
While the storms are hitting some areas well after dark, ‘you can’t see storms approaching very effectively,’ ‘he said. Bunting said and advised people to be prepared and act when warnings are issued and ‘not wait until they can see the danger. ”
He said the Weather Service and local meteorologists have been warning residents about the storms since the weekend.
“For most areas, there will be more than one round of thunderstorms,” he said. “It’s important that you do not wait when one storm passes.”
The storms are likely to cause “significant” power outages, sawed-off trees and floods, adding that structural damage due to the “intense long-distance tornadoes” was perhaps the biggest concern.
An “initial round” of tornadoes is expected to continue over Alabama Wednesday afternoon, the weather service said, as a separate group would develop over northeastern Louisiana before spreading eastward and hitting Mississippi and Alabama. The second round of storms affecting the area – Wednesday night.
People in areas where tornado warnings are issued should hide on the lower floors of their homes and cover themselves with a mattress or pillow, as well as a helmet if one is available, to reduce the risk of injury, Bunting said. .
Michael Levenson reported.