A Guadalupe Virgin statue lays among the rubble of the destroyed home of Juana Landeros, who rode out a deadly tornado with her husband and her 9-year-old son when it rolled through the previous night, Sunday, 26 May 2024, in Valley View, Texas. Powerful storms left a wide trail of destruction Sunday across Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas after obliterating homes and destroying a truck stop where drivers took shelter during the latest deadly weather to strike the central U.S. Photo: Julio Cortez / AP Photo
A Guadalupe Virgin statue lays among the rubble of the destroyed home of Juana Landeros, who rode out a deadly tornado with her husband and her 9-year-old son when it rolled through the previous night, Sunday, 26 May 2024, in Valley View, Texas. Powerful storms left a wide trail of destruction Sunday across Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas after obliterating homes and destroying a truck stop where drivers took shelter during the latest deadly weather to strike the central U.S. Photo: Julio Cortez / AP Photo

By John Seewer
28 May 2024

(AP News) – Strong storms with damaging winds and hail pummeled north Texas on Tuesday morning as much of the U.S. recovered from severe weather, including tornadoes, that killed at least 23 people during the Memorial Day holiday weekend.

Widespread power outages were reported in the region, which includes Dallas and Fort Worth, where an oppressive, early-season heat wave added to the misery. Nearly 800,000 customers lacked electricity Tuesday, including close to 390,000 in Dallas County, according to PowerOutage.us.

Destructive storms over the weekend caused deaths in Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, and Kentucky.

Seven people were killed in Cooke County, Texas, from a tornado that tore through a mobile home park Saturday, officials said, and eight deaths were reported across Arkansas.

Two people died in Mayes County, Oklahoma, east of Tulsa, authorities said. The injured included guests at an outdoor wedding. A Missouri man died Sunday after a tree limb fell onto his tent as he was camping.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said at a news conference Monday that five people had died in his state.

Map showing tornado touchdowns in the United States, 21-27 May 2024. Data: Earthstar Geographics/ NOAA ESRI / Missouri / TomTom / Garmin / FAO / NOAA / USGS / EPA / USFWS. Graphic: AP News
Map showing tornado touchdowns in the United States, 21-27 May 2024. Data: Earthstar Geographics/ NOAA ESRI / Missouri / TomTom / Garmin / FAO / NOAA / USGS / EPA / USFWS. Graphic: AP News

A possible tornado damaged a high school and a half-dozen homes in Pennsylvania on Monday night. No injuries were reported, but school was canceled in Mahanoy City, Pennsylvania, said David Truskowsky, spokesperson for the city’s fire department.

Roughly 160,000 homes and businesses lacked electricity Tuesday following the weekend storms in Kentucky. Arkansas, West Virginia, and Missouri.

It has been a grim month of tornadoes and severe weather in the nation’s midsection.

Tornadoes in Iowa last week left at least five people dead and dozens injured. Storms killed eight people in Houston this month. April had the second-highest number of tornadoes on record in the country. The storms come as climate change contributes in general to the severity of storms around the world.

Late May is the peak of tornado season, but the recent storms have been exceptionally violent, producing very strong tornadoes, said Victor Gensini, a meteorology professor at Northern Illinois University.

“Over the weekend, we’ve had a lot of hot and humid air, a lot of gasoline, a lot of fuel for these storms. And we’ve had a really strong jet stream as well. That jet stream has been aiding in providing the wind shear necessary for these types of tornadoes,” Gensini said.

Jackie Moloney, 88, hangs on to her shredded American flag on Monday, 27 May 2024 as her family cleans up on Morningdale Place in Mehlville, Missouri following a violent storm and possible tornado that hit Sunday evening. The storm destroyed her garage and sent part of a neighbor’s roof into her backyard. Moloney’s daughter Patti Manley got her up and into an interior bathroom as the storm hit. “We heard a loud whoosh,” said Monloney, who bought her home new in 1965. “Thank God for family.” Photo: Robert Cohen / St. Louis Post-Dispatch / AP
Jackie Moloney, 88, hangs on to her shredded American flag on Monday, 27 May 2024 as her family cleans up on Morningdale Place in Mehlville, Missouri following a violent storm and possible tornado that hit Sunday evening. The storm destroyed her garage and sent part of a neighbor’s roof into her backyard. Moloney’s daughter Patti Manley got her up and into an interior bathroom as the storm hit. “We heard a loud whoosh,” said Monloney, who bought her home new in 1965. “Thank God for family.” Photo: Robert Cohen / St. Louis Post-Dispatch / AP

Harold Brooks, a senior scientist at the National Severe Storms Laboratory in Norman, Oklahoma, said a persistent pattern of warm, moist air is to blame for the string of tornadoes over the past two months.

That air is at the northern edge of a heat dome bringing temperatures typically seen at the height of summer to late May.

The heat index — a combination of air temperature and humidity to indicate how the heat feels to the human body — neared triple digits in parts of south Texas on Monday. Extreme heat was also forecast for San Antonio and Dallas.

In Florida, Melbourne and Ft. Pierce set new daily record highs Monday. Both hit 98 degrees (36.7 Celsius). Miami set a record high of 96 (35.5 Celsius) on Sunday.

For more information on recent tornado reports, see The Associated Press Tornado Tracker.

23 are dead across the US after weekend tornadoes. Texas is getting battered again