Kentucky, Ohio, Tennessee, Arkansas weather today: Severe thunderstorms, potential tornadoes forecast

Severe weather swept through a large portion of the Midwest and South on Wednesday, knocking out power, destroying homes, and toppling semitrailers. Several states, including Missouri, Illinois, Michigan, Arkansas, Tennessee, and Indiana, reported significant damage, as reported by The New York Times. On the night of April 2, a tornado tore through neighbourhoods near Lake City and Monette, Arkansas, causing severe damage.

Also read: Tornado warnings in Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois: THESE cities will be most hit

Potosi, Missouri, located about 57 miles southwest of St. Louis, also experienced severe damage. A tree fell on a vehicle in Louisville, Kentucky, and at least one plant in Illinois was damaged, as reported by NBC News.

While the possibility of serious flooding increased in some southern regions, the threat of deadly severe weather continued overnight into the Ohio Valley.

Weather Forecast for the coming days

With more than a foot of rain predicted over the next five days, government forecasters have issued their highest flood warning for the same areas, as the storm system causing the tornadoes is expected to stall by Thursday.

A tornado watch was issued for parts of seven states—Tennessee, Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, Kentucky, and Mississippi—due to a "particularly dangerous situation." This strong language is used sparingly, mainly when violent tornadoes are likely, but also in other extreme events like floods and wildfires.

A large regional area is predicted to experience intense storms today and tonight, with multiple rounds of severe weather possibly hitting certain locations. On Wednesday, the governors of Arkansas and Kentucky declared states of emergency in response.

Meteorologists expect heavy rains to continue from Wednesday through the weekend due to the slow-moving storm system. Rainfall totals of 10 to 15 inches could be "significant and potentially historic" due to the prolonged rainfall. Experts warn that this could result in "generational flooding," particularly in areas stretching from northeast Arkansas through western Tennessee, western Kentucky, and southern Indiana.

The Weather Prediction Center has issued a Level 4 out of 4 warning for extreme rainfall on Thursday, placing areas from northeast Arkansas through the mid-Mississippi Valley and into southern Indiana under a "high risk" warning.

A heightened risk of heavy rains should not be ignored. Some of the deadliest and most catastrophic floods in the past decade have occurred in areas deemed at this level of danger, which is rarely issued. This could even affect areas that typically don't experience flooding.

Also read: Central US threatened by up to 4 months' worth of rain in less than a week. What to know

Severe weather will continue to impact the Ohio Valley as the system moves eastward. However, further south, storms will encounter a powerful dome of high pressure that resembles summer conditions across the Southeast.

This will slow down the storms from Tennessee, Arkansas, and other southern states, creating a flooding situation with isolated severe thunderstorms. Communities around Memphis, Tennessee, could face flooding that threatens lives. Residents in the mid-Mississippi Valley should prepare for both flooding and tornadoes through the rest of the week.

After the storm system stalls, Thursday could see more than 6 inches of rain.

The weather service described this as "a potentially historic, catastrophic, and life-threatening flash flood event."

The meteorological service reports that the front will remain stationary throughout the weekend, expected to "bring potentially historic amounts of rainfall, with some areas possibly seeing 10 to 15 inches of rain by the weekend."

Also read: Indianapolis power outage: Over 135,000 without power after tornado spotted in Carmel

Over the course of four days, many of the same regions may experience repeated rounds of heavy rain, with rainfall rates of two to three inches per hour. The heavy rain will begin Wednesday night and continue through Sunday.

By Wednesday night, over 37 million people were under flood watches, spanning from Texarkana, Texas, to Detroit and Ohio.