At least four killed in Missouri tornado as storm risk shifts east

At least four people were killed and many were injured after a destructive tornado tore through Bollinger County in Missouri in the middle of the night. Damage from the strike appeared most significant in the village of Glenallen, about 100 miles south of St. Louis, officials said Wednesday, as multiple agencies began search and rescue operations.

Sgt. Clark Parrott, a spokesman for the Missouri State Highway Patrol, said he thinks most people may have been at home when the tornado struck, given the hour and the fact that it hit a quiet, rural area. The tornado touched down around 4 a.m., according to the Storm Prediction Center.

The twister was one of numerous tornadoes that hit Missouri, Iowa and Illinois, spawning from severe thunderstorms that struck the area between northern Arkansas and southwest Michigan on Tuesday night and Wednesday morning.

The Missouri highway patrol shared an image showing downed trees and widespread debris to the east of Glenallen, near the city of Marble Hill. Missouri Gov. Mike Parson (R) said in a statement that he planned to visit the damaged areas “and learn what resources will be needed during recovery.” Parson had already activated the state National Guard for storm response Friday and said Wednesday that the order was still in effect.

As authorities begin to pick up from these latest storms, the atmosphere is reloading and is set to deliver another round of dangerous thunderstorms across the Tennessee and Ohio valleys and eastern Great Lakes. A level 3 out of 5 enhanced risk of severe thunderstorms, stretching from just north of Memphis to Cleveland, has been drawn by the National Weather Service Storm Prediction Center.

“Severe thunderstorm winds, large hail and a few tornadoes are expected today from the Great Lakes to parts of East Texas and Louisiana,” the Storm Prediction Center wrote Wednesday.

As of 3:00 p.m. Central time, thunderstorms -- some severe -- spanned from north central Ohio to just north of Houston along a cold front and were sweeping eastward. The most intense activity was focused in southern Indiana and western Kentucky, where tornado warnings had been issued in the past hour.

Tornado watches — alert boxes signifying the potential for storms to produce tornadoes — stretched from western Ohio to northern Mississippi but were being replaced by severe thunderstorm watches to the east from eastern Ohio to northern Louisiana through the evening.

Abnormally warm air was helping to fuel the storms, surging north from the Gulf of Mexico. The National Weather Service predicted record highs well into the 80s as far north as Ohio and western Pennsylvania.

As the storm swept across Chicago early Wednesday, it disrupted air travel. FlightAware.com had logged over 500 delays and 300 cancellations as of midday at O’Hare International Airport.

The storm outbreak comes barely six days after a deadly tornado outbreak struck areas from the Mid-South to the Mid-Atlantic on Friday and Saturday, claiming at least 31 lives amid more than 90 confirmed tornadoes.

April, May and June are historically the peak months for severe weather season. The Lower 48 averages a total of 660 tornadoes during that interim. The year to date has proven anomalously active, with January logging 168 tornadoes, the second most on record for the month. February saw twice as many tornadoes as average, and March will undoubtedly go down in the books as exceptionally busy.

Tornado fatalities in 2023 already outnumber the total from 2022.

Among several hundred reports of severe weather between northern Arkansas and southwest Michigan late Tuesday into early Wednesday, the most destructive storm was probably the one which spawned the tornado in Bollinger County. As it was underway, the Storm Prediction Center estimated that it was a “strong” tornado, probably rating EF2 or EF3 on the 0-to-5 scale for intensity.

Tornado just west of Marble Hill, MO @NWSPaducah #mowx #wxtwitter pic.twitter.com/dFfFI1A6dN

#tornado #damage from #glenallen #missouri #MoWx #drone pic.twitter.com/0DnGl277Yq

Another powerful thunderstorm produced one or more tornadoes west of Peoria, Ill., as well as hail the size of limes. A confirmed tornado was reported in Lewistown, about 35 miles southwest of Peoria. Storm chaser footage showed badly damaged and destroyed homes, some collapsed and with roofs sheared off.

In Iowa, a cyclic supercell, or a rotating storm that dropped several tornadoes, produced a highly viewed rope funnel near Knoxville, southeast of Des Moines.

Rope tornadoes are oftentimes erroneously believed to be weak, but the “drillbit” funnel proved powerful as it plowed through fields.

More intense storms are expected Wednesday afternoon, and they could affect Cleveland, Cincinnati, Indianapolis and Louisville — which are all included in the Storm Prediction Center’s level 3 out of 5 risk area. A level 2 out of 5 slight risk spans from the Canadian border to far northeast Texas.

In early forecasts Tuesday, the National Weather Service highlighted a “strong” tornado potential for Wednesday. However, that has since been eliminated from outlooks, with only a broad risk of isolated tornadoes.

The reason for the downgrade is probably twofold. Given that Tuesday’s threat didn’t prove as widespread as expected, it’s possible that forecasters are less bullish on Wednesday’s prognosis. The other issue is that mid-level winds, which will steer thunderstorms, are parallel to the instigating boundary, the cold front.

That means thunderstorms that form along the boundary won’t move off quickly enough to remain alone and discrete, which would permit them to become rotating supercells. Instead, storms will form along the boundary and then merge with other cells that are also forming along said boundary, morphing into lines and clusters capable of producing damaging straight-line winds. The risk of a tornado is largely predicated on a rogue, renegade storm popping ahead of the mainline.

A few more strong to severe thunderstorms are possible Thursday in the Mid-Atlantic, but the tornado risk remains low.