Deadly storm slams Midwest, extreme risk looms in South

Victoria Cavaliere, Bloomberg News on Mar 15, 2025

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A massive storm system that left over a dozen people dead in the central U.S. was moving toward the Mississippi Valley and southern states on Saturday, prompting the National Weather Service to warn of “the potential for violent, long-track tornadoes.”

Residents in 20 states spanning over more than 500,000 square miles are in the path of the severe storm threat this weekend. The system has been blamed for strong winds that fanned wildfires in Texas and Oklahoma and spawned reports of multiple tornadoes in the Midwest late Friday and early Saturday.

Local authorities in Missouri, where at least 11 people have died, describe multiple flattened and damaged homes and buildings. At least four people were confirmed dead in Arkansas, and Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders declared a state of emergency.

Some 120,000 customers were without power in Missouri by midday Saturday, according to Poweroutage.us. Another 120,000 customers lost electricity across Illinois, Indiana, Texas and Arkansas as the storm moved through early Saturday, the utility tracking website said.

The NWS has issued warnings on Saturday for areas in Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, Tennessee, Illinois, Indiana and Texas. “A rare High Risk (level 5 of 5) of severe thunderstorms is in effect. Across the Tennessee and Ohio Valleys, heavy to excessive rainfall will bring the potential for flash and river flooding today into Sunday,” the forecast reads.

Weather forecaster AccuWeather has also issued an “extreme risk” for Saturday, its most severe prediction.