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At a Glance Severe storms and tornadoes caused widespread damage.
More than a dozen people were killed in Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Kentucky.
Eighty people were injured at a truck stop along Interstate 35 in Valley View, Texas. Sign up for the Morning Brief email newsletter to get weekday updates from The Weather Channel and our meteorologists.
At least 15 people are dead after severe storms and tornadoes swept through parts of Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Kentucky late Saturday night into early Sunday morning.
The storms ripped apart homes, flipped semis and left hundreds of thousands of people without electricity.
Here’s a state-by-state breakdown:
Texas
At least seven people died in Cooke County, Texas, about 50 miles north of the Dallas-Fort Worth metro.
Among those killed were two children, ages 2 and 5. Texas Governor Greg Abbott told reporters the children were from the same family.
“It’s very tragic,” Cooke County Sheriff Ray Sappington told The Weather Channel.
A tornado there tore apart houses and businesses, flipped mobile homes and knocked down trees and power lines. Areas near the community of Valley View were especially hard hit.
Sappington said 60 to 80 people were injured at a truck stop called the AP Travel Center on Interstate 35. Many had rushed there to take shelter.
Damage is seen at a truck stop the morning after a tornado rolled through, Sunday, May 26, 2024, in Valley View, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Semitrailers were overturned further to the south in neighboring Denton County, closer to Dallas. Multiple people were taken to hospitals, some by helicopter, but the full extent of injuries wasn’t immediately known.
During a news conference Sunday evening, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott confirmed at least 100 people were injured, and at least 320 homes and other structures were damaged across four counties.
Gov. Abbott said he expected that number to increase as more damage assessments were completed. He signed disaster declarations for four more counties – Denton, Collin, Cooke and Montague – bringing it to a total of 106 counties on the list.
During that news conference, the National Weather Service also announced a preliminary EF2 rating for the tornado that hit Valley View.
Arkansas
There was heavy damage in northwest Arkansas, where a tornado toppled huge trees onto homes.
At least five people were killed.
A survey team from the National Weather Service has given that tornado in Boone County a preliminary EF3 rating.
A 26-year-old woman was found outside a destroyed home in Olvey in Boone County, Daniel Bolen, with the county’s Office of Emergency Management, told the Associated Press. Six individuals in Boone County were transported to a local hospital for treatment.
Pinkey Edmonson, manager at SusieQ Malt Shop in Rogers, Arkansas, examines the remains of the longtime town hamburger stand on 2nd Street, Sunday May 26, 2024, in Rogers, Arkansas. The building was destroyed by a tornado Saturday night. (J.T. Wampler/The Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette via AP)
Another death occurred in Benton County, Melody Kwok, a county communications director, told the AP that multiple other people were injured. Emergency response was ongoing Sunday morning. Two others died in Marion County, but it wasn’t immediately clear where the fifth death occurred.
“We are still on search and rescue right now,” Kwok said. “This is a very active situation.”
Advertisement More than 113,000 power outages were reported across the state Sunday morning, according to PowerOutage.us.
Oklahoma
At least two people died in Oklahoma. Michael Dunham, deputy director with Mayes County Emergency Management, confirmed the deaths to weather.com Sunday morning. Dunham said search and rescue efforts were continuing, with teams going house to house.
Widespread damage was reported in Claremore, where 23 people were injured. Nineteen of those victims were transported to local hospitals, three with life-threatening injuries. The city was closed to traffic until noon Sunday, except for residents with identification.
Severe damage was reported in Saline as well as other areas of the northeast corner of the state.
Kentucky
At least one death has been confirmed in Kentucky, according to a statement on social media from Governor Andy Beshear.
He also said five counties there have declared an emergency after severe storms rolled through early Sunday. Storms were expected to continue in the state into Sunday night.
More than 210,000 homes and businesses were without power according to PowerOutage.US.
Missouri
A survey team from the National Weather Service confirmed an EF1 tornado touched about 6 miles northwest of Mansfield, Missouri early Sunday morning.
They say the twister downed numerous trees in a wooded area before dissipating near a highway.
Indianapolis 500 Delayed
The Indianapolis 500 was delayed and about 125,000 fans were evacuated from Indianapolis Motor Speedway as a strong storm bore down on the area. The storm brought wind gusts up to 45 mph as well as heavy rain, the Associated Press reported.
The race resumed after a lengthy delay and the green flag dropped just before 5 p.m. EDT.
May Is Living Up To Its Reputation
The storms are the latest round of severe weather to rip apart homes and lives across the Plains, Midwest and South this month, which is typically peak time for tornadoes in the U.S.
Friday, tornadoes were reported in Illinois and North Dakota. There were also dozens of reports of hail and high winds, including gusts between 60 mph and 70 mph in eastern Iowa, Illinois, Indiana and Arkansas.
High winds associated with severe weather overturned this semi-trailer on Interstate 280 west of Davenport, Iowa on Friday, May 24, 2024. (Roy Dabner/Quad City Times via AP)
At least six homes were damaged Thursday night by a large tornado in Jackson County, Oklahoma, in the southwest corner of the state on the Texas border.
Five people were killed by storms in Iowa Tuesday.
1/19 Arrow Left Arrow Right Destroyed homes are seen after a deadly tornado rolled through the previous night, Sunday, May 26, 2024, in Valley View, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
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Weather.com reporter Jan Childs covers breaking news and features related to weather, space, climate change, the environment and everything in between.
Source: weather.com
