More storms take aim at central US, where many are digging out from
tornado damage
[May 19, 2025]
By MATTHEW BROWN and CAROLYN KASTER
LONDON, Ky. (AP) — More severe storms were expected to roll across the
central U.S. this week following the weather-related deaths of more than
two dozen people and a devastating Kentucky tornado.
The National Weather Service said a “multitude of hazardous weather”
would impact the U.S. over the next several days — from thunderstorms
and potentially baseball-sized hail on the Plains, to heavy mountain
snow in the West and dangerous heat in the South.
Areas at risk of thunderstorms include communities in Kentucky and
Missouri that were hit by Friday’s tornadoes.
In London, Kentucky, people whose houses were destroyed scrambled Sunday
to put tarps over salvageable items or haul them away for safe storage,
said Zach Wilson. His parents' house was in ruins, their belongings
scattered.
“We're trying the hardest to get anything that looks of value and
getting it protected, especially pictures and papers and things like
that,” he said.
Here's the latest on the recent storms, some tornado history and where
to look out for the next weather impacts.
Deadly storms claim dozens of lives
At least 19 people were killed and 10 seriously injured in Kentucky,
where a tornado on Friday damaged hundreds of homes and tossed vehicles
in southeastern Laurel County. 0fficials said the death toll could rise
and that three people remained in critical condition Sunday.
Wilson said he raced to his parents' home in London, Kentucky, after the
storm.
“It was dark and still raining but every lightning flash, it was
lighting up your nightmares: Everything was gone,” he said. “The
thankful thing was me and my brother got here and got them out of where
they had barricaded themselves.”
Survey teams were expected on the ground Monday so the state can apply
for federal disaster assistance, Gov. Andy Beshear said. Some of the two
dozen state roads that had closures could take days to reopen.
In St. Louis, five people died and 38 were injured as the storm system
swept through on Friday, according to Mayor Cara Spencer. More than
5,000 homes in the city were affected, she said.
On Sunday, city inspectors were going through damaged areas to condemn
unsafe structures, Spencer said. She asked for people not to sightsee in
damaged areas.
A tornado that started in the St. Louis suburb of Clayton traveled at
least eight miles (13 kilometers), had 150-mph (241-kph) winds and had a
maximum width of one mile (1.6 kilometers), according to the weather
service. It touched down in the area of Forest Park, home to the St.
Louis Zoo and the site of the 1904 World’s Fair and the Olympic Games
that same year.
In Scott County, about 130 miles (209 kilometers) south of St. Louis, a
tornado killed two people, injured several others and destroyed multiple
homes, Sheriff Derick Wheetley wrote on social media.
The weather system spawned tornadoes in Wisconsin and temporarily
enveloped parts of Illinois — including Chicago — in a pall of dust.
Two people were killed in the Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C., by
falling trees while driving.
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A path of destroyed homes is seen, Sunday, May 18, 2025, in London,
Ky., after a severe storm passed through the area. (AP Photo/Carolyn
Kaster)
The storms hit after the Trump administration cut staffing of
National Weather Service offices, with outside experts worrying
about how it would affect warnings in disasters such as tornadoes.
A history of tornadoes
The majority of the world's tornadoes occur in the U.S., which has
about 1,200 annually.
Researchers in 2018 found that deadly tornadoes were happening less
frequently in the traditional “Tornado Alley” of Oklahoma, Kansas
and Texas and more frequently in parts of the more densely populated
and tree-filled South.
They can happen any time of day or night, but certain times of the
year bring peak “tornado season.” That’s from May into early June
for the southern Plains and earlier in the spring on the Gulf Coast.
The deadliest tornado in Kentucky’s history was hundreds of yards
wide when it tore through downtown Louisville’s business district in
March 1890, collapsing multistory buildings including one with 200
people inside. Seventy-six people were killed.
The last tornado to cause mass fatalities in Kentucky was a December
2021 twister that lasted almost five hours. It traveled some 165
miles (266 kilometers), leaving a path of destruction that included
57 dead and more than 500 injured, according to the weather service.
Officials recorded at least 41 tornadoes during that storm, which
killed at least 77 people statewide.
On the same day, a deadly tornado struck the St. Louis area, killing
six people at an Amazon facility in nearby Illinois.
More storms threaten in coming days
Thunderstorms with potentially damaging winds were forecast for a
region stretching from northeast Colorado to central Texas.
And tornadoes will again be a threat particularly from central
Kansas to Oklahoma, according to the National Weather Service.
Meanwhile, triple-digit temperatures were forecast for parts of
south Texas with the potential to break daily records. The hot, dry
air also sets the stage for critical wildfire conditions through
early this week in southern New Mexico and West Texas.
Up to a foot of snow was expected in parts of Idaho and western
Montana.
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Brown reported from Billings, Montana.
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