Storms Tear Through the Southeast and Ohio Valley, Killing 2 As Multi-Day Outbreak Begins

By Allie Goolrick
Published: October 13,2014



 
Note: Tune in to The Weather Channel TV network to watch live coverage on the severe weather outbreak and Tropical Storm Gonzalo. To keep you safe and informed of the latest breaking news, our regular programming will be suspended until the threat has passed.
A multi-day severe weather outbreak began with tragic news Monday morning, as a tornado in southwestern Arkansas killed a Marine and father of three. Eddy Withem, 33, died after an EF2 tornado struck his house in Ashdown around 5:30 a.m. Monday morning.
On Monday night, a 75-year-old woman was killed in Dora, Alabama, after a tree fell on her home, according to law enforcement in Walker County.
Multiple tornadoes were reported on Monday afternoon and evening across several states. Aside from the EF2 tornado in Ashdown, EF1 tornadoes were confirmed in Stone County, Missouri, and Lonoke County, Arkansas, and an EF0 was confirmed in Lawrence County, Missouri.
This was just the start of what is expected to be a long 48 hours for Dixie Alley, as severe weather will continue to move through the Deep South on Monday night and into Tuesday. Damaging winds, frequent lightning and hail could also come with these storms as they push east.
(MORE: Track This Severe Weather Outbreak)
Here's a state-by-state rundown of this severe weather outbreak's effects.

Arkansas

One person is dead and at least four others were sent to a nearby hospital in Little River County when a tornado swept through the county in southwestern Arkansas. The National Weather Service surveyed the damage and found it to be consistent with an EF2 tornado Monday afternoon.
The tornado was in progress at about 5 a.m. local time Monday morning, damaging at least two homes and destroying one, according to the Little River County Sheriff's Office. Eddie Withem, a father of three, was killed after he and his wife, Roxanne, were blown out of their home in Ashdown. Withem didn't survive, and Roxanne remains in critical condition after surgery. The couple's three children sustained minor injures and have since been released from the hospital.
An EF1 tornado carved a three-mile path through an area just north of England, leaving damage to structures – including a few that were damaged by an Oct. 2 twister, they said.
Arkansas Office of Emergency Management spokesman Rick Fahr told The Weather Channel at least two house fires in northwestern Arkansas were believed to be started by lightning Monday morning as the storms rolled through.
"These fires are in the extreme northwest parts of the state, at least 150 miles from where the possible tornado was," said Fahr.
Severe weather pushed through the Natural State Monday, and conditions remained dangerous while the line of storms moved east.
The town of Osceola reported damage from a possible tornado later Monday afternoon, though there were no immediate reports of injuries. Two city buildings were destroyed, according to the National Weather Service.

Alabama

Storms caused widespread damage in Central Alabama that left one person dead, al.com reports.
A woman was killed when a tree fell on her home in Dora in Walker on Monday, according to Myfoxal.com. Shirley Hicks, 75, was in her living room when a tree fell on the home. Her husband was also in the home and sustained minor injures.
Alabama Power reports that nearly 40,000 people were without power in Birmingham, Tuscaloosa and Walker Counties.
Trees and power lines were down and buildings were damaged in Huntsville, Haleyville, Cullman and Shottsville, according to the National Weather Service.
The University of Alabama in Hunstville and Northeast Alabama Community College canceled evening classes on Monday night.

Florida

Three homes and two barns were damaged by storms Monday night near Cantonment, Florida. At least three possible tornadoes were spotted on radar, one in Hays Place, one in Sumatra and another in Apalachicola.

Illinois

Strong winds from a storm system moving across the nation's mid-section caused damage in Belleville. A reported tornado with 'visible debris' was spotted in Long Creek, Illinois, according to the National Weather Service.
Assistant Fire Chief J.P. Penet told the News-Democrat firefighters responded Monday to damage to homes and uprooted trees. There were no reports of injuries.
WCIA reports that trees were down and a home was destroyed near Moweaqua after a reported tornado.
In northeastern Illinois, weather conditions caused 30-minute delays and flight cancelations at Chicago's airports.
Minor damage was also reported in Decatur, Illinois.

Kentucky

A funnel cloud was spotted north of Dawson Springs on Monday night, according to the National Weather service.
Storms in Paducah and Wickliffe brought down trees and power lines and damaged at least one home, according to the National Weather Service.

Louisiana

Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal has declared a state of emergency for the state after strong storms produced possible tornadoes.
Monroe is reporting the worst damage from a possible tornado. According to social media posts, some businesses lost roofs, while several homes and automobiles were damaged by falling trees. The hardest-hit areas were the Garden District and Louisville Avenue. Several streets in the area are blocked, the News Star reports.
A gas leak forced the evacuation of West Monroe High School, according to the News Star.
Over 45,000 customers were without power in Ouachita, Jackson and Morehouse Parishes, the News Star reports. Monroe Public Works Director Tom Janway said that power is out at most of the pump stations, and crews were working to get water service restored. Several highways were closed because of downed trees and power lines.
Roderick Worthy of Entergy said it might be Wednesday before all power is restored.
"We've had significant infrastructure damage with the bulk of that in Monroe and West Monroe," he told the Associated Press. "There's stuff down everywhere."
University of Louisiana at Monroe spokeswoman Kiwana Sutton says several downed trees prompted officials to cancel all classes on Monday. The campus will reopen Tuesday morning.
A concrete plant in Monroe was also damaged.
Monday morning's severe weather was the second wave of nasty storms to hit Louisiana; Sunday evening, there were multiple reports of downed trees after a round of storms moved through northern portions of the state.

Mississippi

A strong line of storms caused damage across Mississippi as it moved through the state.
A fertilizer warehouse in Greenville lost much of its roof around Monday, but Washington County Emergency Manager David Burford says no one was injured.
Widespread tree damage and some property damage was also reported as a squall line moved through Starkville.
More than 10,000 electrical customers lost power at various times. Some of the worst outages were concentrated in Noxubee, Rankin, Simpson and Warren counties.
A Delta flight headed from Atlanta to Jackson was forced to turn back because of storms.
A possible microburst in Starkville brought trees down on cars and power lines. At last one house was severely damaged when a tree fell, according to reports from social media. The MSU department of meteorology reported wind gusts of up to 80 mph.

Missouri

Officials with the National Weather Service in Springfield confirmed an EF0 tornado touched down Monday morning in Lawrence County. The tornado was in progress just before 7 a.m. local time, had maximum wind speeds of 75 mph and stayed on the ground for less than one minute, the NWS confirmed through a damage survey.
Later Monday afternoon, a second tornado was confirmed near Lampe. The NWS rated it EF1 with maximum winds of 80 mph. That tornado damaged several outbuildings and left minor damage at several homes.
The ALCS playoff game between the Kansas City Royals and Baltimore Orioles has been postponed until tomorrow night.

Oklahoma

Damaging winds and large hail were reported Sunday night and early Monday morning in Oklahoma as severe weather moved through the state. In Kiowa County, a mobile home was destroyed, and homes were left damaged in Cotton, Jackson and Stephens counties, according to Storm Prediction Center.
Interstate 40 in Washita County was closed for about an hour Sunday night after strong winds knocked two tractor-trailers onto their side, according to NewsOK. Winds gusted as high as 80 mph Sunday night in parts of the state, according to local storm reports.
No tornadoes or injuries were reported from the storms, the AP added.

Tennessee

A reported tornado with a debris signature was seen on radar near Clarksville on Monday night.
Law enforcement officials in Dyersburg reported a possible tornado with a path a quarter mile long and 200 feet wide. Trees and power lines were down in Sardis, and hail the size of a half dollar fell in Milledgeville, according the National Weather Service.
A reported tornado was also spotted near Parsons in Perry County, and EMS officials also reported a tornado in Ramer.
A tree fell on a home in Waverly, causing major damage, and four houses were damaged in Clay County, WSMV reports. Damage was also reported in Perry, Lawrence, Hickman and Humphreys Counties.
No injuries have been reported so far.

Texas

Power outages were numerous across North Texas early Monday morning as a line of damaging storms brought down power lines. According to the Dallas Morning News, electric company Oncor reported 20,000 outages across the state Monday morning, with 8,000 of those occurring in Dallas.
(MORE: Lightning Sets Oil Well on Fire in Texas)
In the Dallas-Fort Worth area, severe storms left some street flooding and downed power lines, according to the Associated Press. No injuries have been reported in Texas from the storms so far.
Winds gusted as high as 74 mph Sunday evening near the town of Dozier, according to local storm reports.
In Dallas and Houston, flights were delayed for hours due to high winds and storms.