At least 2 dead, over 600 000 without power as severe thunderstorms and tornadoes impact southeastern U.S.
Two people were killed, and widespread destruction was reported across Texas and Mississippi as powerful storms and tornadoes tore through the Southeast on Saturday, December 28, 2024.
Structures damaged in Montgomery County on December 28, 2024. Image credit: Mark Keough County Judge
- Two people were killed—one in Brazoria County, Texas, and another in Natchez, Mississippi during Saturday’s storms.
- Nearly 7 million people across Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas were under tornado watches, including a rare “particularly dangerous situation” warning forecasting strong and long-lived tornadoes.
- The severe weather outbreak is expected to extend into Sunday with risks of tornadoes, heavy rain, hail, and damaging winds affecting the southeastern United States, including the Carolinas.
At least two fatalities were reported in Texas and Mississippi after severe thunderstorms spawned multiple tornadoes on Saturday, December 28.
The NWS Storm Prediction Center received 34 tornado reports from Mississippi (17), Texas (10), Alabama (5), Louisiana (1) and Arkansas (1).
Mayor Dan Davis of Manvel, Texas reported significant damage in Brazoria County, Texas, sharing images of the destruction of multiple homes after a long-tracked storm passed southeast of Houston early Saturday afternoon.
This storm produced a deadly tornado between Liverpool and Hillcrest Village around 12:57 LT. The twister destroyed multiple homes between Alvin and Liverpool and left substantial debris on parts of SH 35, resulting in 1 fatality and 4 people with non-critical injuries, as confirmed by the Brazoria County Sheriff’s Office.
The same storm then tracked near Dickinson across Trinity Bay and by 16:00 LT it produced a large and extremely dangerous tornado near Port Arthur.
In Mississippi, an 18-year-old was killed in Natchez, and two others were injured when a falling tree struck a home on West Wood Road.
Montgomery County Judge Mark Keough said at least 15 people were trapped in homes after the storms, but they have been rescued.
Additional damage was reported in southern Mississippi, where a large tornado passed through the town of Bude around 15:22 LT, overturning several trailer homes. One person was injured here.
Nearly 7 million people were under a tornado watch, including over 2 million residents in parts of Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas.
Over 223 000 customers or about 650 000 people are without power early Sunday morning, December 29.
The worst affected as of 05:30 LT (11:30 UTC) on December 29 is Georgia with over 71 700 customers without power and Mississippi with 70 800. Some 44 000 customers are off in Alabama, 22 000 in Louisiana and 13 000 in Texas.
Severe weather threat continues through Sunday for the Southeast
On Sunday, December 29, the severe weather outbreak is expected to continue spreading into the southeastern United States. Heavy rainfall and scattered thunderstorms may produce tornadoes, damaging gusts, and hail from the eastern Gulf Coast northward into the Carolinas.
The NWS Weather Prediction Center (WPC) indicated a slight risk (level 2 out of 5) of severe thunderstorms in the Carolinas. Rain showers are also expected to spread into the Northeast on Sunday, with light wintry precipitation developing over parts of Michigan’s Lower Peninsula during the night.
References:
1 Tornadoes rip through South as destruction seen in multiple states amid deadly severe weather outbreak – Fox Weather – December 27, 2024
2 At least 2 dead after severe weather moved through Mississippi and eastern Texas, officials say – CNN -December 28, 2024
3 Short Range Forecast Discussion – NWS/WPC – December 29, 2024
I am an Assistant Editor and Severe Weather & Science Journalist at The Watchers, specializing in real-time severe weather coverage, geophysical event reporting, and research-driven scientific analysis. You can reach me at rishav(at)watchers(.)news.
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