What could prove to be the longest tornado in US history has left a trail of destruction from Arkansas to Kentucky, part of a vast storm front that is feared to have killed at least 100 people in southern and central states of the US.
A candle factory in Mayfield, Kentucky, and an Amazon warehouse in Edwardsville, Illinois, were just two of the buildings destroyed in Friday night’s storm, which was all the more unusual because it came in December, when colder weather normally limits tornadoes
Tornadoes tore through central and southern US states on Friday, leaving at least 70 people feared dead in what President Biden called an ‘unimaginable tragedy’
Continue reading...Kentucky was hardest hit as four tornadoes, including a massive storm, devastated a town and collapsed a factory building
Seven central and southern US states were picking up the pieces Saturday after a series of powerful tornadoes intensified by severe storms ripped across the region, leaving an estimated 70 to 100 people dead.
Kentucky was hardest hit as four tornadoes, including a massive storm, devastated Mayfield, a small town 134 miles (215 km) north-west of Nashville, Tennessee. A candle factory partially collapsed when the tornado struck on Friday evening.
Continue reading...An Amazon warehouse near Edwardsville, Illinois, about 25 miles (40km) north-east of St Louis, was destroyed in extreme weather conditions on Friday night. It wasn’t immediately clear how many people were hurt by the roof collapse, but emergency services called it a 'mass casualty incident' on Facebook. One official told KTVI-TV that as many as 100 people may have been in the building, working the night shift, at the time of the collapse.
Up to 100 people are feared to have been killed after a devastating outbreak of tornadoes ripped through Kentucky and other US states on Friday night and early Saturday morning
Continue reading...Five seriously injured, says county judge in Arkansas, as rescue workers in Illinois attend site of roof collapse at Amazon warehouse
At least two people were killed when a tornado ripped through an Arkansas nursing home, while a roof collapsed at an Amazon warehouse in Illinois, reportedly causing many injuries.
Craighead county judge Marvin Day said the tornado struck the Monette Manor nursing home in north-east Arkansas at about 8.15pm, trapping 20 people inside as the building collapsed. About 90 minutes later the building had been cleared and everyone initially believed to have been inside had been accounted for, but Day said crews still must search the debris for possible additional victims.
Continue reading...Fears death toll will rise after record rainfall destroys highways and leaves tens of thousands in the US and Canada without power
At least one person has been killed and several more are feared dead after a huge storm hit the Pacific north-west, destroying highways and leaving tens of thousands of people in Canada and the US without power.
Canada’s largest port was cut off by flood waters, as emergency crews in British Columbia announced on Tuesday that at least 10 vehicles had been swept off a highway during a landslide.
Continue reading...Northern California faces flash flood risk and threat of mudslides, especially in fire-charred areas
A huge Pacific storm is poised to unleash conditions known as an “atmospheric river”, with torrential rains and strong winds putting about 10 million people at risk of flash floods in parts of northern California this weekend.
The incoming tempest has raised fears of mudslides, especially in areas charred during record-setting wildfires this summer.
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Statements are coming in from opponents of the new Texas voting law. Here are some edited versions of some of them:
Here’s where the day stands so far:
Continue reading...Extreme weather promoted the first ever flash flood emergency warning for New York City from the National Weather Service
The National Weather Service (NWS) has issued its first ever flash flood warning for the city of New York, as the remnants of Hurricane Ida brought heavy rain that flooded subway lines and streets in the Manhattan, Brooklyn and New Jersey.
Amid the downpour, the service said on Twitter, “this particular warning for NYC is the second time we’ve ever issued a Flash Flood Emergency (It’s the first one for NYC). The first time we’ve issued a Flash Flood Emergency was for Northeast New Jersey an hour ago.”
Continue reading...Nearly all of Louisiana lost electrical power on Monday after one of the strongest hurricanes to strike the region downed power lines, littered roads with debris and flooded isolated communities south of New Orleans in the US. After dumping a deluge of rain in Louisiana by late Monday afternoon and killing at least two people, Ida was downgraded to a tropical depression as its eye crawled through neighbouring Mississippi
Continue reading...Crews using airboats and helicopters conduct search and rescue missions after at least two people killed
More than 1 million homes and businesses remained without power in and around New Orleans on Monday as residents and authorities began to assess “catastrophic” damage from Hurricane Ida, a 150mph monster storm that was the most powerful ever to hit Louisiana.
Related: New Orleans battered by Hurricane Ida as storm claims first victim in Louisiana
Continue reading...Up to 2 million people in and around New Orleans were without power after Hurricane Ida, a 150mph monster storm that was the most powerful ever to hit Louisiana. At least one person was killed, by a falling tree, but the governor, John Bel Edwards, warned that the death toll will probably rise
Continue reading...A million households without power as governor says system of levees overhauled after Hurricane Katrina will face ‘most severe test’
One person has died as Hurricane Ida, one of the most powerful storms ever to hit the US, knocked out power to all of New Orleans, reversed the flow of the Mississippi River and blew roofs off buildings across Louisiana.
Related: Hurricane Ida live updates: first death in Louisiana as New Orleans loses power
Continue reading...Hurricane Ida made landfall in Louisiana on Sunday as a brutal category 4 storm, slamming the coast with 150mph sustained winds as it trudged towards New Orleans and Baton Rouge, threatening devastation.
Related: The Katrina survivors who fled devastation only to freeze in Texas
Continue reading...Tens of thousands in US face evacuation orders as storm makes first landfall in Cuba, sparking fears of floods and mudslides
Hurricane Ida rapidly gained strength on Friday evening as communities in southern Louisiana braced for a major category 4 storm with sustained winds of about 140mph and tens of thousands of residents were placed under mandatory evacuation orders.
The hurricane is due to make landfall in the US on Sunday, with officials warning of a “life-altering storm”. The cities of New Orleans and Lafayette, as well as the state capital, Baton Rouge, are under threat from Ida, which is forecast to reach the US somewhere between the parishes of Terrebone and St Mary, slightly west of New Orleans.
Continue reading...The flooding in rural areas on Saturday took out roads, cellphone towers and telephone lines, leaving families uncertain about whether loved ones survived. Many of the missing live in neighborhoods where the water rose fastest, Humphreys county sheriff Chris Davis said.
At the White House in Washington, Joe Biden said he expressed his 'deepest condolences for the sudden and tragic loss of life through this flash flood'
Continue reading...Succession of thunderstorms deposited record-breaking 17in of rain in some parts of state
Tennesseans were surveying the mangled wreckage of towns and communities across the middle of the state on Monday, after a record-breaking deluge caused flash flooding that swept away houses, shattered lives and left at least 22 people dead and many more missing.
Related: A midwestern town moved uphill to survive climate crisis. Can others do the same?
Continue reading...National Hurricane Center says storm to slow down further and likely stall near Connecticut-New York line
The slow-rolling storm Henri was taking its time drenching the US north-east on Monday.
Henri, which made landfall as a tropical storm on Sunday afternoon in Rhode Island, had moved north-west through Connecticut. It hurled rain westward far before its arrival, flooding areas as far south-west as New Jersey before pelting north-east Pennsylvania, even as it dropped to tropical depression status.
Continue reading...At least 22 people were confirmed dead on Sunday as rescue crews searched desperately amid shattered homes for dozens still missing after record-breaking rain sent floodwaters surging through parts of Tennessee.
Related: A midwestern town moved uphill to survive climate crisis. Can others do the same?
Continue reading...Preparations for a monster storm forecast to hit parts of the US north-east were stepped up on Saturday after Henri was promoted to a hurricane as it moved closer to land.
In New York, Andrew Cuomo used his last hours as governor to direct the state response, declaring a state of emergency in some areas and telling residents: “If you have to get to higher ground, it has to be today.”
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