55M Americans directly in path of severe weather as deadly storms charge east from Texas

A deadly severe weather system continues to charge east Thursday and is expected to tear across more than a dozen states, from parts of Texas to the densely populated mid-Atlantic and Northeast, placing over 55 million Americans directly in the path of its destructive forces.

This comes after the severe weather turned deadly on Wednesday as several tornadoes ravaged parts of the Mississippi Valley.

Meanwhile, a once-in-a-generation flooding event is expected from Arkansas to Indiana through the weekend.

Residents of Nashville, Tennessee, endured a harrowing Wednesday night as a relentless barrage of Tornado Warnings swept through the city and surrounding areas of Middle Tennessee.

The storms forced hotel guests at Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center to move to the basement in the pre-dawn hours of Thursday.

Footage by Mike Hockett shows dozens of people sheltering and making their way downstairs as tornado sirens sound.

“Stuck in Nashville for a third night after all flights to Chicago were canceled for weather, and now woken up at 3 a.m. for a tornado warning,” Hockett captioned the footage. “All of us at the Gaylord Opryland moving into the basement.”

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Amidst multiple Tornado Warnings impacting Middle Tennessee, the governor has declared a state of emergency.

In Dickson County, troopers prioritized road clearing and checked for stranded drivers early Thursday morning as storms rolled through.

The overnight events followed the dramatic capture of a large and powerful tornado by FOX Weather Exclusive Storm Tracker Brandon Copic on Wednesday evening. He filmed the massive twister as it roared near Lake City, Arkansas. Authorities issued a Tornado Emergency – the most dire of tornado alerts – for towns in the path of the storm, such as Leachville and Monette.

“You need to be underground,” Copic said in the video. “You will not survive this tornado if you are above ground.”

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While the overall risk level has slightly decreased from Wednesday’s “high risk,” a Level 3 out of 5 alert remains in effect from northeastern Texas, including Texarkana, to West and Middle Tennessee, including Memphis and Nashville.

Meanwhile, a wider area faces a Level 2 out of 5 risk from Central Texas to the mid-Atlantic and Northeast.

These storms could drop very large hail (larger than golf ball-sized) across the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex on Thursday morning. In general, hail will be the main concern with Thursday morning’s storms as they mostly stay north of the front and elevated in nature.

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Severe storms will continue to fire through the day and may sneak south of the front and become surface-based, the FOX Forecast Center said. Should this happen, a notable increase in the risk of tornadoes will become apparent from northeastern Texas into Mississippi. Some of these tornadoes could be strong (EF-2 to EF-3). 

Another round of elevated storms is likely from late Thursday into early Friday and will support a risk of large hail as storms overrun the now-stalled front across central and northwestern Texas and into southern Oklahoma overnight.

Several clusters of strong to severe storms are possible throughout the day from the Ohio Valley into the mid-Atlantic.

These storms will primarily threaten damaging 60-plus-mph winds, but a tornado or two will also be possible. 

Louisville, Kentucky; Cincinnati, Ohio; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; and Washington, D.C., are just some of the cities that are in this threatened area.