Winter onslaught hitting Midwest, at least 43 killed
To the north, the Chicago area was being hit by sleet, which was expected to turn to rain, while snow was falling in Wisconsin, Iowa, Nebraska, Michigan and parts of western Missouri, Leseney said.
The governors of New Mexico, Texas and Missouri declared states of emergency for all or parts of their states Sunday to better handle storm damage.
Pam Russell, left, rescues her cat, Larue, from her damaged home on Delta Drive a day after a tornado hit in Rowlett, Texas, Sunday, Dec. 27, 2015.
A tornado struck Birmingham, damaging houses, uprooting trees and injuring at least three people in the state’s largest city, law enforcement and weather officials said. That being said, the National Weather Service declared that an abundance of weather impacts are expected to occur in the Midwest and Plains.
“The fact that people survived it, it’s fantastic”, Garland police lieutenant Pedro Barineau said.
Three people died in Collin County, about 45 miles northeast of Dallas, according to sheriff’s deputy Chris Havey, although the circumstances were not immediately clear. CNN affilate KTVT said they included two deaths in Copeville, where the National Weather Service confirmed an EF-2 tornado, and the death of an infant in Blue Ridge.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott made disaster declarations yesterday for four counties and says the death toll from Texas twisters could rise from the current 11. The National Weather Service said snow drifts more than 7 feet high have been reported. The US storms have been attributed to a regular weather pattern known as El Niño, but scientists have also pointed to the connection between extreme events and global warming. Severe storms are forecast for Sunday night through Monday as a strong cold front pushes through.
Six tornadoes were reported on Sunday – three in Arkansas, two in MS, and one in Texas.
That snow will eventually work its way down to Dallas, blanketing and freezing over communities in the middle of tornado clean-up.
KXAN’s Erin Cargile will be live in North Texas on KXAN News at 5, 6, 9 and 10. State officials say there have been more than 200 road closures statewide. He added that the roadway was snow-packed and icy.
In Oklahoma, crews were busy treating highways and bridges with salt and sand, according to Oklahoma’s Department of Energy Management.
New video shows the forming of the deadly tornado that tore through Garland and Rowlett, Texas, on Saturday.
Flood warnings were in effect Tuesday for dozens of counties, including St. Louis County, where the Missouri and MS rivers meet.
“The little boy was hanging on to the back of the auto”, Tyler said Saturday.
A state of emergency has also been declared in Missouri, where heavy rains have caused major flooding.
Hundreds of homes in Texas were reduced to rubble and cars were blown off the road.
The Oklahoma Highway Patrol said the body of a 22-year-old Arkansan was recovered in northern Oklahoma but a second man, 29-year-old Craig Strickland of Springdale, Ark., was still missing after the two went duck hunting and their boat capsized.
Flash flooding closed roads across Alabama and trapped motorists in rapidly rising waters.
Conditions are especially perilous in places unused to heavy snowfall such as New Mexico, where urban areas lack snow removal equipment, and few drivers are experienced at driving safely in snow and ice. Authorities found a victim submerged in a vehicle in Gordon County, which has been hit hard by flooding.
The Federal Aviation Administration issued a ground stop for Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport because of the weather. American Airlines announced the cancellation of 170 flights out of the airport Sunday. Both communities are northeast of Dallas.
The family’s vehicle was overcome with flood water and ended up in a ditch near Tyler’s Pinson home. She said Santillano asked her to take the girl to the hospital, and she headed out with another neighbor. “The church across the street was destroyed”. A local church has offered to house the family as they recover. “It’s extremely hot, and there is no power”.