A tornado destroyed homes, forced the evacuation of a nursing home and toppled trees and power lines when it roared through a small Oklahoma town, one of several twisters that erupted in the nation's heartland amid a series of powerful storms that stretched into Tuesday. At least two deaths were reported.

The tornado ripped through the 1,000-person town of Barnsdall on Monday night. It was the second tornado to hit the town in five weeks, a twister on April 1 with maximum wind speeds of 90 to 100 mph damaged homes and blew down trees and power poles in Barnsdall.

The National Weather Service’s Storm Prediction Center reported twenty tornadoes in seven states from Monday evening through early Tuesday. Eight of the twisters were in Oklahoma. The others touched down in Kansas, South Dakota and Iowa, Nebraska, Missouri and Tennessee.

So far this month, 500 wind and hail reports have been issued by storm spotters across the nation. In addition, 59 preliminary tornadoes were reported, mostly in the central U.S. Texas has taken the lead from Iowa for tornado reports in the year so far, with 62 preliminary reports, AccuWeather says.

One person died in Barnsdall and at least one is missing, Barnsdall, Oklahoma Mayor Johnny Kelley said.

First responders rescued about 25 people, including children, from heavily damaged homes where buildings had collapsed on or around them, Kelley said. About a half dozen people suffered injuries, including a firefighter who was taken to a hospital with chest pains, he said.

Damage also was reported in Bartlesville, about 20 miles northeast.

The storm prediction center warned of an enhanced risk of severe thunderstorms across the Ohio Valley with a possibility of few, potentially strong, tornadoes, hail and severe, damaging winds.

In Kansas, some areas were pelted by apple-sized hail 3 inches in diameter.

The storms tore through Oklahoma as areas, including Sulphur and Holdenville, were still recovering from a tornado that killed four and left thousands without power late last month. Both the Plains and Midwest have been hammered by tornadoes this spring.

The entire week is looking stormy across the U.S. The eastern U.S. and the South are expected to get the brunt of the bad weather through the rest of the week, including in Indianapolis, Memphis, Nashville, St. Louis and Cincinnati, cities where more than 21 million people live. It should be clear over the weekend.

Meanwhile, floodwaters in the Houston area began receding Monday after days of heavy rain in southeastern Texas left neighborhoods flooded and led to hundreds of high-water rescues. (Source: The Detroit News)

Story Date: May 8, 2024