Millions of people in the central United States could see powerful storms Monday including long-track tornadoes, hurricane-force winds and baseball-sized hail, forecasters said.

Much of Oklahoma and parts of Kansas are at the greatest risk of bad weather — including parts of Oklahoma, such as Sulphur and Holdenville, still recovering from a tornado that killed 4 and left thousands without power last week.

In all, nearly 10 million people live in areas under threat of severe weather, the Storm Prediction Center said. Forecasters there issued a rare high risk for central Oklahoma and southern Kansas. The last time a high risk was issued was March 31, 2023, when a massive storm system tore through parts of the South and Midwest including Arkansas, Illinois and rural Indiana.

Other cities that could see stormy weather include Kansas City, Missouri and Lincoln, Nebraska.

The entire week is looking stormy. Indianapolis, Memphis, Nashville, St. Louis and Cincinnati, could see severe thunderstorms later in the week, impacting more than 21 million people.

Meanwhile, early Monday heavy rains hit southwestern Texas, especially the Houston area, leaving neighborhoods flooded and leading to hundreds of high-water rescues.

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Alexa St. John is an Associated Press climate solutions reporter. Follow her on X: @alexa_stjohn. Reach her at [email protected].

News Source : https://www.opb.org/article/2024/05/06/southern-us-tornado-thunderstorm-watch/