Destructive Tornadoes Devastate Tennessee as Flash Floods Wreak Havoc

Relentless Storms Wreak Havoc Across Southern US, Bringing Tornadoes and Flood Risks

Posted May 10, 2024

A relentless wave of severe weather has claimed at least three lives in the past 24 hours, wreaking havoc across the South. Storms are expected to persist through Friday. The Storm Prediction Center reported that parts of the region, especially Texas, were hammered with large hail the size of golf and tennis balls. Strong winds also tore through East Texas to South Carolina, uprooting trees across the region.

In northern Alabama, the National Weather Service issued a tornado emergency late Wednesday for Henagar, a small city around 55 miles east of Huntsville. A “large and destructive” EF-2 tornado with winds reaching 135 mph injured seven people. Widespread power outages were reported in multiple states, affecting over 50,000 homes and businesses in Alabama, 44,000 in Texas, 16,000 in North Carolina, and 13,000 in Tennessee.

Powerful storms raged through the South on Thursday afternoon, delivering damaging winds and tornadoes. At least two tornadoes were confirmed in southern Georgia—one near Ellaville and another near Alston. Since April 25, the U.S. has reported at least one tornado daily, totaling over 300 in just over two weeks. With April and May being peak tornado months, Thursday brought severe weather risks to more than 60 million people from the South to the East, with tornado warnings still active for Tennessee, Georgia, and South Carolina.

In Henagar, Alabama, video captured funnel clouds, heavy rain, and lightning. The severe weather risk zone spans from Texas to Georgia and reaches as far north as Maryland, threatening approximately 64 million people.

Flash floods inundated Springfield, Tennessee, after six to nine inches of rain fell, submerging cars and making roads impassable. This prompted flood watches for eight million people across Kentucky and Tennessee. The severe weather threat on Friday shifts to northern Florida, southern Georgia, and southern South Carolina. The Storm Prediction Center categorized these areas as Level 2 out of 5 risk zones.

Relentless Storms Wreak Havoc Across Southern US Bringing Tornadoes and Flood Risks: Actionable Insights on EigenPrism

Post-Event

Tornado & Hail

Subscribers of Canopy Weather in EigenPrism can assess the impact of the tornadoes and hail from May 09, 2024, using these footprints within EigenPrism®

US Tornado Proximity Map as of 2024-05-09

Daily CONUS Hail Swath Map –as of 2024-05-09 –

Forecast

All EigenPrism® users can assess the forecast of this multi-peril event using the following report template:

US Severe Weather 2024 Forecast Report

The report template auto-updates with the latest available footprints, which include:

Significant Tornado Day 1 Outlook
Significant Hail Day 1 Outlook
Significant Wind Day 1 Outlook
WPC 3-Day Excessive Rainfall Outlook
NA 5-day Flood Potential
NA 3-day Flood Potential
US Flood Outlook

May 08|Destructive Tornadoes Devastate Tennessee as Flash Floods Wreak Havoc

A series of powerful storms swept across the central and eastern U.S. on Wednesday, leaving at least two people dead in Tennessee. Flash flooding and tornadoes ravaged the state after nightfall, including a destructive tornado that devastated communities south of Nashville, with violent storms spanning from the Carolinas to the Midwest.

Severe storms stretched across a 900-mile path from Kansas to eastern North Carolina, with 13 confirmed tornadoes. Tennessee, southern Illinois, and northern Alabama bore the brunt of the damage from these tornadoes while neighboring states reported hundreds of hail incidents and damaging winds.

Late Wednesday night, tornado warnings were in place for northern Alabama, including Henagar. The National Weather Service identified a “large and destructive tornado” near Henagar, east of Huntsville. Tornado watches were also active for Alabama, Georgia, Arkansas, Mississippi, and Tennessee until early Thursday morning.

The National Weather Service confirmed four tornadoes in Tennessee, including two in Maury County. A “confirmed large and destructive tornado” was reported near Spring Hill. Another tornado tore through Clarksville in northern Tennessee, prompting a tornado emergency in Eagleville, south of Nashville.

Severe weather pushed into Alabama late Wednesday night, leaving significant destruction in the Huntsville and Henagar areas. Henagar was under a tornado emergency in DeKalb County, with reports of substantial damage.

A flash flood emergency was declared for Robertson and Sumner Counties in Middle Tennessee near the Kentucky border, about 20-30 miles north of Nashville. The National Weather Service rated this region and southern Kentucky at Level 3 out of 4 for flash flooding risk. Between 4 and 7 inches of rain fell on Wednesday, leading to water rescues and significant flooding.

On Thursday, the most severe storms are expected from central Texas to the Ark-La-Tex region, with risks of baseball-sized hail, damaging winds, and isolated tornadoes. Early Thursday morning, Poweroutage.us reported nearly 240,000 power outages across the Southeast.