Severe weather kills at least 15 in Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas

VALLEY VIEW, Texas (AP) — Powerful storms destroyed homes and destroyed a truck stop in Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas on Sunday, killing at least 15 People were killed, hundreds were injured, and widespread destruction was caused.

The storm caused the most damage from northern Dallas to the northwest corner of Arkansas, and the system had the potential to bring more severe weather to other parts of the Midwest later in the day. By Monday, the greatest risk will shift to the east, covering a swath of the country from Alabama to near New York City, forecasters said.

A tornado ripped through a mobile home in Cook County, Texas, near the Oklahoma border on Saturday night, Texas Governor Greg Abbott said at a news conference on Sunday. Seven people died in a rural area near the park. The dead included two children aged 2 and 5 years old.

The storm also killed two people and destroyed homes in Oklahoma, injuring guests at an outdoor wedding, five people in Arkansas and one person in Kentucky. Tens of thousands of residents in the area were without power.

In Texas, about 100 people were injured and more than 200 homes and buildings were destroyed, Abbott said, sitting at a destroyed truck stop near the small farming community of Valley View. The area was among the hardest hit, with winds estimated at 135 mph (217 kph), officials said.

“The hopes and dreams of Texas families and small businesses have literally been shattered by storm after storm,” Abbott said. The state has experienced several consecutive episodes of severe weather, including Eight people died in Houston.

Hugo Parra, who lives in Farmers Branch, north of Dallas, said he rode out the storm in a truck stop bathroom with 40 to 50 people. The storm ripped off roofs and walls from buildings, snapped metal beams and left mangled cars in the parking lot.

“A firefighter came over to check on us and he said, 'You're lucky,'” Parra said. “The best way to describe it is the wind trying to blow us out of the bathroom.”

Ambulances and helicopters took several people to hospitals in Denton County, north of Dallas.

Abbott said no more deaths were expected in Texas and no one was missing, but rescuers were still conducting a round of searches as a precaution.

At least five people have died in Arkansas. One of the victims, a 26-year-old woman, was found dead outside a destroyed home in the small Boone County community of Olvey, according to Daniel Bolen of the county's Office of Emergency Management. One person died in Benton County and two more bodies were found in Marion County, officials said.

Two people died in Mayes County, Oklahoma, east of Tulsa, officials said.

A man was crushed to death by a falling tree in Louisville, Kentucky, on Sunday, police said. Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg confirmed on social media that the death was storm-related.

a series of deadly storms

The damage continues a month of deadly bad weather in central parts of the country.

Iowa tornado left last week At least five people died and dozens of injuries. These deadly tornadoes came during the worst tornado season in history, when climate change Adding to the severity of storms around the world. There is in April Second most tornadoes And it has been registered in the country.

Meteorologists and authorities issued emergency warnings for people to seek cover as storms moved through the region late Saturday into Sunday. “If you're in the path of this storm, take cover now!” National Weather Service office in Norman, Oklahoma, posted on X.

Harold Brooks, senior scientist at the National Severe Storms Laboratory in Norman, said a series of tornadoes over the past two months were caused by persistent warm, moist air.

Brooks advises travelers traveling through threatened areas over the Memorial Day weekend to have a plan for weather emergencies.

Travelers who have already chosen where to get food and other necessities “should probably think about what I can do to save my life if a dangerous situation arises,” Brooks said.

Houses destroyed, roads blocked

On Sunday, residents woke up to overturned cars and collapsed garages. Some residents could be seen pacing and assessing the damage. Nearby, neighbors sat on the foundation of a destroyed house.

In Valley View, near the truck stop, the storm ripped off roofs and blew out windows. Clothes, insulation, bits of plastic and other debris were wrapped around miles of chain link fences surrounding pastures in rural areas.

Kevin Dorantes, 20, was in nearby Carrollton when he learned a tornado was about to hit the Valley View neighborhood where he lives with his father and brother. He called the two of them and told them to take shelter in the windowless bathroom, where they weathered the storm unscathed.

As Dorantes wandered near downed power lines and destroyed homes, he came across a family whose home had been reduced to a pile of crumbling rubble. Dorantes said a father and son were trapped under the rubble as friends and neighbors raced to rescue them.

“They were conscious, but their injuries were serious,” Dorantes said. “Father's leg was broken.”

Widespread power outage

As of Sunday evening, more than 80,000 customers in Arkansas were without power. In neighboring Missouri, more than 90,000 people were without power. Texas reported 27,000 outages, while Oklahoma reported 3,000 outages, according to the tracking website U.S. power outage.