Extreme rainfall brings life-threatening flooding to parts of central US already slammed by storms

(CNN) — As communities in the central US grapple with widespread devastation from a line of deadly storms that spawned dozens of tornadoes this week, more grave threats to the region are underway: additional severe thunderstorms and relentless rain with the potential to trigger “generational” flooding into the weekend.

At least eight people have been killed across Tennessee, Missouri, Indiana and Kentucky during extreme weather this week. The most recent death occurred Friday morning, when a boy was swept away by floodwaters while walking to his school bus stop in Frankfort, Kentucky, police said.

He was identified as 9-year-old Gabriel Andrews, the Franklin County Coroner’s Office told CNN in a statement. Gabriel’s body was found about half a mile from where he was reportedly swept away, Coroner William C. Harrod said. It took first responders more than two hours to find his body, police said.

The Mississippi Valley, including parts of Arkansas, Missouri, Tennessee and Mississippi, is in the midst of a three-day stretch of a level 4 of 4 high risk of flooding rain – an occurrence almost unheard-of outside hurricane season. The prolonged extreme flood threat adds another level of danger and misery for anyone picking up the pieces from extensive storm damage.

About 260 flood warnings spanned at least 15 states Friday evening and those numbers will likely climb into the weekend.

Around 4 million people are under flash flood warnings across five states that stretch from Texas to Kentucky.

On Friday afternoon, severe storms fired up in northeastern Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas that led to multiple tornado warnings and some observed tornadoes, forcing people to take shelter.

Damage was reported in northeast Texas following a series of tornadoes. In Wood County, one person was injured and at least one house was damaged by toppled trees, according to county emergency officials.

Flash flooding fueled by intense rainfall forced water rescues in Missouri and Kentucky Friday afternoon. There were 15 water rescues in Van Buren, Missouri, alone after 3 inches of rain fell.

Residents in Louisville, Kentucky, were asked to temporarily reduce their water use for appliances like washing machines and dishwashers as the sanitary sewer system hit capacity.

Selmer, Tennessee, a town about 90 miles east of Memphis, was hit hard in Wednesday’s tornado outbreak. Residents of a newly built apartment complex there scrambled to take shelter as the storm struck.

“Most people took shelter in their laundry rooms inside of the apartments,” said resident Justin West, whose unit survived while the front of the complex was “almost gone.”

West witnessed cars destroyed in the parking lot, piles of debris and sections of the roof torn away. The complex opened less than a year ago, he pointed out.

Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee urged residents to stay alert, saying, “Don’t let your guard down.”

“There’s been a lot of damage, there’s been a lot of tornadoes, there’s been loss of life and real devastation across the state, but this storm is going to continue,” Lee said on Thursday.

At least five deaths had been reported in the state, according to Patrick Sheehan, director of the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency. And there were more than 2,200 customers without power in the state Friday evening, according to PowerOutage.us.

At one point Thursday, tornado sirens in Nashville were sounding so frequently, their batteries drained and they fell silent, remaining inoperable until power was restored, city emergency officials said, encouraging residents to have multiple ways to receive weather alerts, including local news, weather apps and weather radios.

In Pilot Grove, Missouri, a tornado swept through the small city, leaving a trail of scattered debris, CNN affiliate KOMU reported. Among those affected was Justin Gerke, who rushed home after receiving an alert.

“I got a tornado warning alert on my phone and came home as soon as I could from work,” Gerke told KOMU. When he arrived, he found the roof of his childhood home ripped off, the garage obliterated, and several destroyed cars.

In Nevada, Missouri, the storm left widespread damage, including at Nevada Oaks, a former motel now serving as student housing for the Missouri Welding Institute, a trade school specializing in welding and metal fabrication. The family-owned property, which houses approximately 50 students, sustained significant damage, residents told CNN affiliate KSHB.

“This is our heart and soul,” Shari Snyder, who operates Nevada Oaks, told KSHB. “We love this place, my dad put everything into this place, and the students loved it here.” While no students were injured in the storm, the tornado shattered windows and destroyed several cars in the parking lot, the affiliate reported.

Damage survey teams from the National Weather Service have given preliminary ratings to at least 31 tornadoes in eight states since the outbreak began Wednesday.

So far, they have found three tornadoes of at least EF3 strength in Missouri, Tennessee and Arkansas. Additional surveys could take days to complete and some have been held up by the continuing hazardous weather.

More life-threatening flooding to come and more severe thunderstorms roaring to life

As the cleanup of tornado damage begins, the persistent threat of flooding and a renewed risk for damaging thunderstorms looms large.

A “life-threatening, catastrophic, and potentially historic flash flood event continues across the Lower Ohio Valley and Mid-South to Lower Mississippi Valley,” the Weather Prediction Center warned Friday.

A level 4 of 4 high risk of flooding rainfall is in place Friday and Saturday, with the greatest impact going forward expected from far northeastern Texas to Kentucky.

From Arkansas to Kentucky, historic rainfall could bring once-in-a-generation flooding, with more than a foot of rain falling on the area in just a few days.

Flooding is already underway and will likely worsen after some areas recorded more than 6 inches of rain Wednesday through Thursday. Rainfall totals are projected to be so extreme that forecasters are using statistical terms, such as 1-in-25-year, 1-in-100-year, and even 1-in-1000-year events, to describe their rarity.

Climate change is making heavy rainfall events heavier. A recent study found hourly rainfall rates have intensified in nearly 90% of large US cities since 1970.

A serious storm threat is developing Friday in tandem with the flood threat. A level 4 of 5 risk of severe thunderstorms is in place from northeastern Texas, through Arkansas and into southern Missouri, according to the Storm Prediction Center. More than 3 million people were under tornado watches in the region Friday afternoon.

The fiercest storms started to fire up Friday afternoon and will continue through the evening. These storms could unleash damaging winds, large hail and tornadoes – some of which could be rated EF2, EF3 or higher, according to the center.

Ahead of the worsening flooding and new storms, federal and local agencies have mobilized water rescue teams and emergency supplies, including food and water, to brace for the worst.

In Nashville, over a dozen water rescues took place on Thursday as relentless rain battered the city. Near Trevecca Nazarene University, first responders pulled a driver from a partially submerged vehicle, guiding him through a window and onto a rescue raft.

Officials in Tennessee and Kentucky announced schools in several districts would remain closed on Friday, including Allen County Schools and Davidson Academy.

In Missouri, the Army Corps of Engineers said it had filled roughly 1,500 sandbags to bolster a levee near Poplar Bluff, where the Black River is projected to approach a level of “major flooding” category over the weekend. An urban search-and-rescue team has also been deployed to the area to support emergency efforts.

Shipping delays are also possible with the major cargo hubs of Louisville, Kentucky, and Memphis, Tennessee, in the line of storms.

In Kentucky, Gov. Andy Beshear declared a state of emergency for the western part of the state, warning of record rainfall in areas unaccustomed to flooding. More than 300 roads across the state were closed due to flooding, including 109 state highways, state officials said Friday.

This comes after other recent flooding events in Kentucky. In February, a deadly winter storm claimed several lives, and in 2021, the state faced another large-scale flash-flooding disaster.

Correction: A previous version of this story incorrectly stated the number of storm-related deaths in McNairy County, Tennessee. As of Friday morning, one death has been confirmed in the county, the state’s emergency management agency said.

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