More storms take aim at central US, where many are digging out from tornado damage

LONDON, Ky. — More severe storms were expected to roll across the central U.S. this week following the weather-related deaths of more than two dozen people and a devastating Kentucky tornado.

The National Weather Service warned over the weekend that a ''multitude of hazardous weather'' would impact the U.S. over the next several days — from thunderstorms and potentially baseball-sized hail on the Plains, to heavy mountain snow in the West and dangerous heat in the South.

Areas at risk of thunderstorms include communities in Kentucky and Missouri that were hit by Friday's tornadoes.

St. Louis Fire Chief Dennis Jenkerson warned people to get ready for approaching weather and suggested inviting in neighbors if their homes were in questionable condition.

''We're asking people to prepare for this weather. Please find a safe place to go while the weather is coming in. Get there before it arrives and that's going to assist the fire department,'' he said during a news conference on Sunday. ''It's going to take your help to get through this next wave of storms.''

In London, Kentucky, people whose houses were destroyed scrambled Sunday to put tarps over salvageable items or haul them away for safe storage, said Zach Wilson. His parents' house was in ruins, their belongings scattered.

''We're trying the hardest to get anything that looks of value and getting it protected, especially pictures and papers and things like that,'' he said.

Deadly storms claim dozens of lives

At least 19 people were killed and 10 seriously injured in Kentucky, where a tornado on Friday damaged hundreds of homes and tossed vehicles in southeastern Laurel County. 0fficials said the death toll could rise and that three people remained in critical condition Sunday.

Wilson said he raced to his parents' home in London, Kentucky, after the storm.

''It was dark and still raining but every lightning flash, it was lighting up your nightmares: Everything was gone,'' he said. ''The thankful thing was me and my brother got here and got them out of where they had barricaded themselves.''

Survey teams were expected on the ground Monday so the state can apply for federal disaster assistance, Gov. Andy Beshear said. Some of the two dozen state roads that had closures could take days to reopen.

On Sunday, city inspectors were going through damaged areas to condemn unsafe structures, Spencer said. She asked for people not to sightsee in damaged areas.

A tornado that started in the St. Louis suburb of Clayton traveled at least 8 miles (13 kilometers), had 150-mph (241-kph) winds and had a maximum width of 1 mile (1.6 kilometers), according to the weather service. It touched down in the area of Forest Park, home to the St. Louis Zoo and the site of the 1904 World's Fair and the Olympic Games that same year.

In Scott County, about 130 miles (209 kilometers) south of St. Louis, a tornado killed two people, injured several others and destroyed multiple homes, Sheriff Derick Wheetley wrote on social media.

The weather system spawned tornadoes in Wisconsin and temporarily enveloped parts of Illinois — including Chicago — in a pall of dust.

Two people were killed in the Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C., by falling trees while driving.

A history of tornadoes

The majority of the world's tornadoes occur in the U.S., which has about 1,200 annually.

Researchers in 2018 found that deadly tornadoes were happening less frequently in the traditional ''Tornado Alley'' of Oklahoma, Kansas and Texas and more frequently in parts of the more densely populated and tree-filled South.

They can happen any time of day or night, but certain times of the year bring peak ''tornado season.'' That's from May into early June for the southern Plains and earlier in the spring on the Gulf Coast.

The deadliest tornado in Kentucky's history was hundreds of yards wide when it tore through downtown Louisville's business district in March 1890, collapsing multistory buildings including one with 200 people inside. Seventy-six people were killed.

On the same day, a deadly tornado struck the St. Louis area, killing six people at an Amazon facility in nearby Illinois.

More storms threaten in coming days

The weather service's Storm Prediction Center warned in a social media post of enhanced risks of severe thunderstorms Monday across parts of the Plains into the Ozarks, with the possibility of tornadoes, very large hail and damaging wind. Storms were expected to develop in the afternoon and persist into the evening.

Meanwhile, triple-digit temperatures were forecast for parts of south Texas with the potential to break daily records. The hot, dry air also sets the stage for critical wildfire conditions through early this week in southern New Mexico and West Texas.

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