Severe Storms and Flash Flooding Hit the South and Midwest
DYERSBURG, Tennessee — Another round of torrential rain and flash flooding came Saturday for parts of the South and Midwest already heavily waterlogged by days of severe storms that also spawned deadly tornadoes. Forecasters warned that rivers in some places would continue to rise for days.
Day after day of heavy rains have pounded the central U.S., rapidly swelling waterways and prompting a series of flash flood emergencies from Texas to Ohio. The National Weather Service said dozens of locations in multiple states were expected to reach major flood stage, with extensive flooding of structures, roads, bridges and other critical infrastructure possible.
At least 16 people weather-related deaths have been reported since the start of the storms, including 10 in Tennessee.
A 57-year-old man died Friday evening after getting out of a car that washed off a road in West Plains, Missouri. Flooding killed two people in Kentucky — a 9-year-old boy swept away that same day on his way to school, and a 74-year-old whose body was found Saturday inside a fully submerged vehicle in Nelson County, authorities said.
Also Saturday a 5-year-old died at a home in Little Rock, Arkansas, in a weather-related incident, according to police. No details were immediately provided.
Tornadoes earlier in the week destroyed entire neighborhoods and were responsible for at least seven of the deaths.
The rising waters of the Licking River touch the basketball hoops at Max Goldberg Park, Saturday, April 5, 2025, in Falmouth, Ky. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
(Carolyn Kaster / AP)
And interstate commerce is affected — the extreme flooding across a corridor that includes the major cargo hubs in Louisville, Kentucky and Memphis could lead to shipping and supply chain delays, said Jonathan Porter, chief meteorologist at AccuWeather.
The outburst comes at a time when nearly half of NWS forecast offices have 20% vacancy rates after job cuts — twice that of just a decade ago.
Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg said Saturday that the Ohio River rose 5 feet (about 1.5 meters) in 24 hours and would continue to swell for days.
“We expect this to be one of the top 10 flooding events in Louisville history,” he said.
Flash Flood Threat Looms Over Many States
Flash flood emergency and tornado warnings continued to be issued Saturday across Arkansas, Mississippi and Tennessee, with more heavy rains and damaging winds in the mix.
Hundreds of Kentucky roads were impassable because of floodwaters, downed trees or mud and rock slides.
Downtown Hopkinsville, Kentucky, reopened in the morning after floodwaters from the Little River receded, giving a much-needed reprieve, but still more rainfall was on its way Saturday and Sunday, Mayor James R. Knight Jr. said.
“We got a little rain, but most of it went north of us,” Knight said. “Thank goodness on that. Gave us a little break.”
In north-central Kentucky, emergency officials ordered a mandatory evacuation for Falmouth, a town of 2,000 people in a bend of the rising Licking River. The warnings were similar to catastrophic flooding nearly 30 years ago when the river reached a record 50 feet (15 meters), resulting in five deaths and 1,000 homes destroyed.
An aerial view of buildings and vehicles on a flooded property Saturday, April 5, 2025, in Frankfort, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)
(Jon Cherry / AP)
