Central U.S. hit by floods after tornadoes

[May 18, 2015]  By Jon Herskovitz
 
 AUSTIN, Texas (Reuters) - Thunderstorms and floods battered several central U.S. states on Sunday after a tornado series hit large parts of the area a day earlier, cutting power lines and damaging structures.

Parts of Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Tennessee and Kansas were either under a flash flood watch or flash flood warning on Sunday morning as thunderstorms battered several central states, the National Weather Service said.

Parts of the town of Mosby, Missouri, with a population of about 200 people and located some 25 miles northeast of Kansas City, were being evacuated due to flooding on the Fishing River that has shut roads, the Clay County Sheriff's office said on its Twitter feed.

The flood warnings come after there were 29 reported tornadoes on Saturday that hit states ranging from Louisiana to Wyoming, the weather service said.

Texas and Oklahoma were the hardest hit but there were no reports on Sunday morning of major damage or deaths. Thousands were without power due to the storms.

"We haven't had any injuries reported as of this morning," Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management spokeswoman Keli Cain said.

The damage in Oklahoma was mostly in the southwestern and northeastern parts of the state, she said.

The National Weather Service has also issued a flash flood watch for parts of south-central Pennsylvania.

(Additional reporting by Kevin Murphy in Kansas City; Editing by Dominic Evans)

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