CNN –
Strong storms will continue to threaten parts of the south-central United States Saturday morning after a powerful system that spawned tornadoes moved through the region, damaging homes in Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas.
At least one person was reported dead and “multiple are missing” in southeast Oklahoma’s McCurtain County, which suffered extensive storm damage after a possible tornado touched down in the town of Idabel, according to county emergency manager Cody McDaniel.
Authorities were still trying to determine the extent of the damage and injuries Friday evening, he said, adding, “It’s not good.”
In Texas, near the state border with Oklahoma, at least 50 homes were damaged or destroyed in Lamar County Friday evening, the sheriff’s office said.
Several tornado warnings were in effect Friday night in Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Missouri, meaning tornadoes were reported to be on the ground or indicated by weather radar. The weather service recommends that residents in warning areas move to a safe such as a basement or an interior room.
A preliminary count Friday evening from the National Weather Service’s Storm Prediction Center shows nine tornadoes formed in Texas, four in Arkansas and one in Oklahoma.
Nighttime tornadoes can be especially dangerous because they can be difficult to see as they move quickly through an area, and it’s also more difficult to ensure residents are warned during these hours.
Additionally, more than 100,000 homes and businesses were without power in Arkansas, Louisiana, southeast Oklahoma and east Texas early Saturday, according to Poweroutage.us.
Most of the Texas tornadoes occurred along the Red River border with Oklahoma, with widespread damage in two counties.
The National Weather Service confirmed Friday afternoon that a tornado was spotted moving at 45 mph over the town of Wrightsville in Pulaski County, Arkansas, south of Little Rock.
The number of recorded tornadoes will likely increase Saturday, and the intensity of each won’t be known until local National Weather Service offices conduct damage surveys, which could take several days.
A sudden onset of cold weather amid unseasonably warm conditions had been forecast to create the biggest tornado threat the United States has seen in more than five months.
A severe thunderstorm watch remains in effect for parts of eastern Arkansas, northwestern Mississippi and western Tennessee until 4 a.m. local time Saturday.
Officials in Lamar County, Texas, declared a disaster after at least 10 people were injured when a tornado ripped through the area, according to a news release from the county sheriff’s office. No deaths have been reported.
Two of the injured suffered critical injuries, the sheriff’s office said. Earlier Friday, a first responder was injured during the storms in the county and underwent surgery, county trooper Steven Hill told CNN.
“There was a lot of damage and some injuries,” Lamar County Sheriff Travis Rhodes told CNN Friday night.
In nearby Hopkins County, at least four homes were damaged Friday, according to the county sheriff’s office.
A woman in Choctaw County, Oklahoma, was injured by a falling tree while trying to get to a storm shelter, Lewis Collins, a volunteer with the Choctaw Office of Emergency Management, told CNN. It is not clear if a tornado had occurred in this area.
Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt is praying for those affected by the tornadoes.
“Search and rescue teams and generators forwarded to the Idabel area,” he lamented. “Storms affected Bryan, Choctaw and Le Flore counties, among others. Additional flash flooding in some areas.”
The Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management and Homeland Security is urging residents to report storm damage online to help coordinate their response.