Severe Storms Across Southeast Bring Tornadoes, NWS Warns of More Outbreaks

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The U.S. National Weather Service said a regional outbreak of severe storms and tornadoes was possible on Thursday from parts of east-central Georgia and north-eastward across South Carolina and North Carolina.

“Significant tornadoes, wind damage and large hail will be possible from morning into afternoon,” the NWS said late on Wednesday in a tweet.

“Scattered severe thunderstorms are expected today from portions of eastern Georgia, through the Carolinas into extreme southeast Virginia. All severe hazards are possible,” the NWS’ Storm Prediction Center said in the early hours of Thursday.

By Wednesday night, center had received 129 reports of severe weather, including 21 tornadoes, some of which led to serious damage of homes and businesses in Alabama and Mississippi, according to the Washington Post.

Over 40 million Americans from Texas to Georgia were at risk of severe weather, including nearly 1.5 million residing in the top-tier high-risk zone, the newspaper reported late on Wednesday.

The AP reported some schools in the South closed Wednesday as residents in several states braced for the possibility of intense tornadoes that travel for miles and hail the size of baseballs.

At highest risk is a region that includes parts of Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Tennessee. The area in the bullseye for possible tornadoes is home to more than 8 million people and includes Memphis, Tennessee; Birmingham, Alabama; Little Rock, Arkansas; and Jackson, Mississippi.

Communities across the South were also urging residents to know where their closest tornado shelters are.

In Jackson, Tennessee, officials said the Carl Perkins Civic Center and McKeller-Sipes Regional Airport will be open for citizens seeking shelter from severe weather starting at 9 a.m. Wednesday. Jackson is a city of about 67,000 people in West Tennessee.

(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Giles Elgood)