(NewsNation) — Brutal storms are sweeping through the Midwest and South, reportedly killing at least one person and downing power across a swath of states.
Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Missouri and Mississippi saw dozens of tornado and severe thunderstorm warnings on Wednesday, with 2.5 million people in multiple states falling under a relatively rare “high-risk” category.
The National Weather Service forecasts the storms will linger across the central and southern U.S. for days, causing “life-threatening, catastrophic, and potentially historic flash flooding.”
Tornado, storm damage across US
In southeast Missouri, potential tornadoes tore through towns, ripping roofs off buildings and toppling trees. At least one person in the Ozarks area was killed during the storm, according to local reporting.
EF-1 tornado damage has been identified in the area, according to NWS damage survey results. Eight train cars were also knocked off their tracks, NewsNation local affiliate KSNF reports.
Arkansas saw multiple suspected tornadoes on Wednesday as a rare Tornado Emergency alert was briefly issued in the state, National Weather Service meteorologist Chelly Amin told the AP.
“It’s definitely going to be a really horrible situation here come sunrise in the morning in those areas,” Amin said.
The Arkansas Division of Emergency Management on Wednesday reported at least four people were hurt, and damage has been reported across 22 counties from the storms.
A tree fell and knocked down power lines and blocked a street in a residential neighborhood during storms on Wednesday, April 2, 2025, in Memphis, Tenn. 
Damage in Danville, Ind., after severe storms wracked the Midwest on April 2, 2025. 
A building collapses in Brownsburg, Ind., following severe storms on April 2, 2025.
At least one person in Indiana was hospitalized when a tornado barreled through the Sur La Table warehouse in Brownsburg, Indiana, according to NewsNation local affiliate WTTV.
Other damage included five overturned semi trucks on the interstate near Lowell, Ind., per state police.
Four people were injured in Kentucky when a church was hit by debris from a suspected tornado, according to Ballard County Emergency Management,
On Wednesday, the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency declared a rare Level 3 state of emergency.
With more than a foot of rain possible over the next four days, the prolonged deluge “is an event that happens once in a generation to once in a lifetime,” the weather service said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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