Millions of people from Texas, Ohio, Tennessee, Nebraska and Oklahoma are bracing for dangerous conditions as forecasters warn of possible tornadoes, 80-mph wind gusts, flooding and hail as the extreme weather outbreak rolls into its sixth week.
About 18 million people are at risk for severe storms Monday night across the Central Plains in areas like North Texas, South Dakota and eastbound into Illinois.
The cities most at risk include Oklahoma City, Tulsa, Wichita, Omaha, Kansas City, Lincoln, Wichita Falls and Des Moines.
The severe storm risk extends to 25 million people across the Midwest, the Ohio Valley and the Tennessee Valley on Tuesday.
Following a week of heavy flooding that included rescue crews pulling hundreds of people to safety, the Southeastern part of Texas is underwater.
In recent days, the weather has been problematic in parts of Texas, including the Houston area, which saw more than 500 rescues and evacuations in a matter of days.
On Monday, Gov. Greg Abbott said severe weather was to blame for at least three Texas deaths: a 5-year-old boy swept away by floodwaters in Johnson County early Sunday; Lt. James “Jimmy” Waller, a Conroe police officer whose home was hit in the April 28 tornado in Trinity County; and a man, not identified who was also swept away by stormwater in Bosque County in recent days. Details for the latter death were unavailable.
“It is heart-wrenching to see our fellow Texans being literally inundated with record water fall,” Abbott said during a news conference Monday.
The child was with his mother and her husband when the vehicle they were in became immobile amid swift water, according to a statement from the Johnson County Office of Emergency Management. The three searched for dry ground, but the child became separated and was found deceased more than two hours after the man and woman were rescued, the office said.
The governor put the impact of the weather in numbers: Fewer than 7,000 utility customers remained without power following a weekend peak of about 160,000 in the dark; Roughly 800 homes have been damaged; 43 locations on state roads remained closed because of high water; and 14 state road locations are shuttered as a result of storm damage.
“Damage to structures is catastrophic,” Abbott said.
In Houston, conditions remained hazardous, as police had to resort to using jet skis to pull another man and three dogs out of nearly 8 feet of water. With homes and cars drowned out by the rain, an official told NBC News that recovery will prove taxing.
“For these people, it’s very difficult. These people might not be back in their homes for a year or two,” the official said.
Throughout last week, areas northeast of Houston got more than 23 inches of rain, according to the National Weather Service. Meanwhile, areas in Northeastern Harris County got anywhere between 6 inches to 17 inches of rain in that same period.
The Associated Press
The Associated Press
Dennis Romero
contributed
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