Damaging Winds and Large Hail Threaten the Carolinas

July 9,2016
Severe thunderstorms, primarily with damaging winds and large hail, will threaten the Central Appalachians and Southern Plains through Friday.
The Eureka, Kansas, area took a direct hit from two tornadoes Thursday evening, as multiple structures were damaged, including a hospital and a nursing home.
A National Weather Service survey team identified two damage paths in the Eureka area. One tornado was rated an EF-3 on the enhanced Fujita scale (winds 136-165 miles per hour) northwest of Eureka. The other was rated an EF-2 (winds 111-135 miles per hour) in Eureka.
Additionally, floods forced evacuations and water rescues in Tennessee and Kentucky Thursday morning. States of emergency ended up being declared in those states. For more on Thursday's severe weather reports, click here to read our impacts article.

Current Radar with Watches and Warnings

(MORE: View National Interactive Radar Map | Difference Between a Watch and a Warning)
Below is our latest forecast thinking on the timing and magnitude of the severe threats through early Saturday.

Severe Weather Forecast

Into Saturday

• Forecast: The potential for severe storms will continue farther east along the cold front from the southern Plains through the Central Appalachians, to the Carolinas. A few early morning storms in the eastern Great Lakes into western New York or western Pennsylvania.
• Threats: Damaging winds and large hail are the main threats, though a tornado or two can't be ruled out.

Friday Night Into Saturday Thunderstorm Forecast

Storm Reports

Trees were down and some homes were damaged in Owensboro, Kentucky on Friday.
One woman was injured Thursday night in Newton, Missouri, when a tree fell on her house.
There were twelve reports of tornadoes on Thursday, six in Kansas, four in North Dakota one in Nebraska and one in Minnesota. Most were brief and in rural areas, however.
Meanwhile, there were nearly 300 reports of high winds/wind damage Thursday, especially from Missouri to the Carolinas.
Enning, South Dakota, saw tea-cup sized hail on Wednesday, which accumulated on the ground and shattered several vehicle windows. Winds of 60 mph allowed those hailstones to pile up in drifts, similar to snow in the winter.
There were nine reports of tornadoes Wednesday, eight in Nebraska and one in Montana. Fortunately, they were all in relatively rural areas, and no damage was reported as a result.
Meanwhile, over 300 reports of high winds/wind damage were reported Wednesday from the Dakotas to Georgia and South Carollina, associated with clusters of t-storms.
Widespread damaging wind gusts were observed across southern Minnesota on Tuesday, which knocked down trees and power lines, including in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro. At one point Tuesday night, about 130,000 Xcel Energy customers had lost power in Minnesota, The Associated Press reported.

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PHOTOS: Plains, Midwest Mid-June 2016 Severe Weather and Flooding