Tornado watches were posted for parts of eight states on Wednesday, including those areas still struggling from the devastation inflicted by a cluster of tornadoes the week before.
Since early Wednesday morning, the National Weather Service (NWS) has issued a tornado watch for parts of Arkansas, northern Louisiana, east Texas, and southeast Oklahoma. The NWS issued further tornado watches for Missouri, Kentucky, Illinois, and Indiana on Wednesday afternoon, ABC News reported.
The tornado warnings are likely to last until Wednesday night.
A tornado watch implies that tornadoes and strong thunderstorms are possible in and near the watch region. People in certain locations should be on the watch for potentially dangerous weather and listen for local authorities' announcements.
Winds of up to 75 mph have been observed in some portions of the tornado-watch zone, which spans from New Orleans to Evansville, Indiana, and inch-sized hail has been reported in Oklahoma, according to the weather service.
A large storm system is moving eastward out of the Rocky Mountains, with severe weather outbreaks likely to occur in the South and Midwest. Major cities such as Dallas, New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Jackson, Mississippi, Memphis, Tennessee, and Mobile, Alabama are expected to experience severe weather.
Heavy Damage to Infrastructures
According to a local media report, a tornado struck Springdale, Arkansas, on Wednesday, causing extensive damage to an elementary school and wounding seven individuals, two of whom were critically injured.
The damage done in Springdale indicated that the tornado that made landfall was a powerful EF-2 on the Enhanced Fujita scale, according to the NWS. As per the scale, EF-2 twisters can generate winds of more than 150 mph.
Storms came through Oklahoma's Seminole County Tuesday night, creating 60 mph wind gusts and inch-sized hail, prompting the National Weather Service to issue a tornado warning. Meanwhile, CNN reported that the Tennessee fire grew to 1,000 acres due to strong winds.
According to Perrin Anderson, the Assistant County Mayor in Sevier County, the Hatcher Mountain/Indigo Lane fire, which has been fanned by heavy winds, has spread to almost 1,000 acres and has destroyed 35 structures.
The fire is about 30 miles southeast of Knoxville, and it is being fuelled by the wind from a weather system that recently ravaged the Southeast and Texas.
At least one person was hurt and was flown to a nearby hospital by helicopter. That person's condition is uncertain as of present writing.
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7 People Injured, Including 2 in Critical Condition
In northwestern Arkansas, at least seven people got injured when a tornado landed early Wednesday morning, which caused power interruptions and damage to infrastructures, according to local officials. According to an NWS team sent to Springdale, the tornado was found to be a "strong tornado" with a 2 rating on the enhanced Fujita scale.
Weather Service meteorologist Robert Darby said the "nighttime" tornado could have a wind gust up to 135 miles per hour, which can be dangerous "when people are asleep and may not receive warnings," per The New York Times.
Springdale Mayor Dough Sprouse reported that two were in critical condition among the seven individuals rushed to hospitals in the area.
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