Weekly Wrap-Up: April Ends With Severe Storms in South; Storms Complicate Rescue of Nepal Earthquake Survivors

By Michael Kuhne, AccuWeather.com Staff Writer

May 1,2015; 11:20AM,EDT

 

 

While severe storms moving across portions of the southern United States kicked off the week, the storms dwindled as the week moved forward, setting the stage for quieter weather for the start of May.
Eastern Texas was struck by severe storms Sunday, which continued into early Monday morning. Softball-sized hail, damaging winds and tornadoes pummeled the region.
A tornado struck Rio Vista, Texas, about 40 miles south of Fort Worth, late Sunday night. Local emergency management reported about overturned trucks and various building damage, including to the local high school.
Strong winds contributed to damage across Walker County, Texas. (Photo/Walker County Office of Emergency Management
After surveying the area on Monday afternoon, the National Weather Service reported the damaged aligned with an EF0 tornado.
Earlier Sunday night, additional tornadoes touched down near Stephenville and Glen Rose, Texas.
In the wake of strong winds, thousands of people were without power into Monday morning as electric crews rushed to repair downed power lines.
Damaging storms also swept through southern Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi on Monday. Storms with drenching rain reached to the western part of the Florida Panhandle.
RELATED:
Interactive Radar
AccuWeather MinuteCast® For Your Exact Location
US Summer Forecast: Northeast to Endure More 90-Degree Days Than in 2014
Thunderstorm winds blew several railroad cars off the Huey P. Long Bridge in Metairie, Louisiana, Monday morning.
Elsewhere, the roofs of several homes were damaged in Thibodaux, Louisiana. A tornado was spotted in the area by law enforcement.
Enough of a break in the stormy weather pattern occurred Wednesday to allow high-wire performer Nik Wallenda to walk atop a 400-foot-high observation wheel, called the Orlando Eye.
While strong storms continued to bring downpours to areas of Florida Wednesday, much drier weather will continue to settle in for the weekend.
For many areas in the South, this may end up being the nicest weekend of the spring.

Rainfall over much of the South this April has been well above average.
In some cases, rainfall of two to three times the April average has occurred.
Meanwhile, a magnitude-7.8 earthquake rocked Nepal, causing buildings, roads and world heritage sites to crumble from the force of shaking, early Saturday morning. The earthquake claimed more than 4,300 lives and injured more than 6,000 others in Nepal, India, and surrounding countries, according to The Associated Press.
The earthquake, which may be the second strongest on record in Nepal, caused major damage in Kathmandu. Avalanches were triggered on nearby Mount Everest.
Stormy weather in the wake of the earthquake hampered the massive search, rescue and recovery efforts in the following days. By Thursday, the disruptive weather pattern broke for clearing skies.
While the weather hampered rescue and recovery efforts at times, those left homeless from the disaster will not be exposed to the harsh weather experienced across the region during the winter and summer months.
"Winter season low temperatures often fall to or below freezing in Kathmandu and the surrounding region during the months of December and January," according to AccuWeather Meteorologist Eric Leister. "Meanwhile, torrential rain and flooding often unfolds during the peak of monsoon season which falls from June into early September."
Several AccuWeather.com staff writers and meteorologists contributed content to this article.