CNN
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Tens of millions of people across vast swaths of the United States – starting in parts of the central and southern Plains and then the Mississippi and Ohio valleys – are threatened by large hail, damaging winds and violent tornadoes this Memorial Day weekend.
“Multiple casualties,” some of whom may be trapped, were reported in the town of Denton, Texas, about 40 miles northwest of downtown Dallas, after severe weather hit the area overnight, the Denton Fire Department said, adding that medics and other resources had been dispatched. to the stage.
There was also “major damage” at the county line on a road, Denton officials said on social media.
The National Weather Service office in Fort Worth issued several tornado warnings for several North Texas cities Saturday evening, asking residents to immediately take shelter as a tornado was seen heading east between Valley View and Sanger around 10:40 p.m.
High temperatures and high humidity fueling strong storms in the central part of the country set the stage for nocturnal tornadoes overnight, the National Weather Service said.
A long series of storms moved across northern Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas Saturday evening, bringing torrential rain and grapefruit-sized hail to some areas. Tornado watches and warnings continue in parts of Oklahoma and Kansas, as well as severe thunderstorm watches further east, affecting millions of people.
More than 200,000 homes and businesses in the Plains and Missouri were without power early Sunday due to severe weather, including 96,244 customers in Missouri, 48,309 in Kansas, 30,948 in Texas and 20,678 in Oklahoma, according to poweroutage .us.
Storms will gain strength and strength in the evening and overnight and move eastward into the Mississippi Valley.
According to the Storm Prediction Center, “severe tornadoes, extreme hail and wind damage corridors” are most likely present within the watch area, but could extend beyond. Everywhere from Kansas and Nebraska to the Mississippi Valley, storms could occur with strong wind gusts, hail and tornadoes.
Denton City Fire Department
The City of Denton Fire Department shared a photo early Sunday of a severely damaged building following severe weather in the area.
Severe thunderstorms will continue over parts of the Mississippi Valley through Sunday morning before gradually losing strength. But a new series of devastating storms is expected to arrive soon after.
Thunderstorms will develop over parts of the Midwest Sunday afternoon and develop farther south and east through the evening and overnight. Powerful storms could potentially extend from the Great Lakes to the South Sunday evening.
Damaging wind gusts and hail will be the main dangers of any severe thunderstorms Sunday, but some could produce tornadoes. Right now, the greatest tornado threat is in parts of the Midwest, especially in the afternoon and evening.
Travel hubs in Chicago, Indianapolis, St. Louis and Nashville could face devastating storms, leading to flight delays or cancellations.
And the Memorial Day weekend storms aren’t over. More than 77 million people in the United States will face large hail, tornadoes and damaging winds on Sunday as a multi-day severe weather event continues to impact parts of the country over the holidays.
Supercell thunderstorms that sparked across parts of the southern and central United States on Saturday triggered tornado watches and warnings, including a rare “particularly dangerous situation” tornado watch designation for three states where the National Weather Service has seen an unusually high level of confidence in the potential for tornadoes. of at least one force EF2 to form.
On Sunday, the severe weather threat is expected to move east toward the Ohio and Tennessee river valleys.
Some of Saturday evening’s storms will remain a threat through mid-morning Sunday, followed by a secondary series of storms Sunday afternoon.
An area of severe showers and thunderstorms is expected to flood parts of eastern Missouri and the Ohio Valley on Sunday. A Level 3 of 5 risk for severe thunderstorms is in place for parts of the Middle Mississippi Valley and Ohio Valley through Monday morning, according to the Storm Prediction Center.
The storms could bring hazards including frequent lightning, severe thunderstorm wind gusts, hail and a few tornadoes.
The Storm Prediction Center noted additional potential threats of EF2 to EF5 tornadoes, hail 2 inches or larger, and severe thunderstorm wind gusts of 74 mph or higher over parts of the region.
The potential for heavy rain over parts of the Ohio and Tennessee valleys, the middle Mississippi valley and the central Appalachians caused a slight risk, level 2 of 4, of excessive precipitation in these regions until Monday morning.
Cities like Louisville, Kentucky; Cincinnati; Saint Louis; Nashville, Tenn.; and Indianapolis are among the cities included in the Level 3 threat. Severe weather may affect the Indianapolis 500 race scheduled for Sunday at noon ET.
The National Weather Service office in Indianapolis is forecasting showers and thunderstorms, mainly before 4 p.m. ET in Speedway, Indiana, on Sunday, with an 80% chance of precipitation and gusts up to 25 mph.
The last time rain shortened the Indy 500 race was in 2007, after 166 laps, according to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
The Storm Prediction Center has a Level 4 out of 5 severe thunderstorm risk for parts of the Central and Southern Plains through Sunday morning.
“The dangers associated with these storms are frequent lightning, violent storm wind gusts, hail and some tornadoes,” according to the center. “Additionally, there will be an additional threat of EF2 to EF5 tornadoes and hail 2 inches or larger over the area.”
Severe thunderstorm wind gusts of 74 mph or higher could also threaten parts of Kansas, western Missouri and northern Oklahoma on Sunday.
The unofficial start of summer also brings sweltering heat, reaching potentially record temperatures in parts of the United States on Monday.
Houston; New Orleans; Miami; Mobile, Alabama, Tampa, Florida; and Charleston, South Carolina, are among the places where the warm weather will feel more like July than late May over the holiday weekend.
A subtropical high over Mexico will help generate excessive heat warnings and heat advisories in South Texas through Monday, according to the Storm Prediction Center. “The ridge will create a dangerous early season heat wave over southern Texas and southern Florida,” according to the center.
High daily temperatures and a heat index above 115 are possible in some areas, the Storm Prediction Center noted.
Those spending time outdoors or experiencing a power outage should drink enough water, wear light clothing, and locate cooling centers if necessary.
CNN Meteorologist Elisa Raffa and CNN’s Paradise Afshar contributed to this report.
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