In case you missed it: Severe weather, flooding plague the central US; Massive landslide displaces hundreds in Bolivia
Severe thunderstorms ripped through the south-central United States on Tuesday, spawning over two dozen tornadoes across Oklahoma, Kansas, Texas, Missouri and Arkansas.
There were at least 2 fatalities and 22 reported injuries in Oklahoma.
Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt declared a state of emergency for 52 counties due to severe weather and flooding on Wednesday.
As tornadoes were menacing areas farther south, a flash flood emergency was declared for downtown Davenport, Iowa, as floodwaters from the Mississippi River rose and breached a barrier.
According to Davenport Mayor Frank Klipsch, no injuries were reported in the flooding.
Large hail struck places from Amarillo, Texas, to Collinsville, Illinois, even reaching larger than baseball-size in Ozona, Texas.
Severe weather sparked a tornado in Sulphur, Oklahoma, Tuesday morning, April 30, 2019. (Brandon Clement)
Across the world in India, over 1 million people evacuated from the eastern coastline as Cyclone Fani approached. One government official said the evacuation effort is the largest in the nation's history, according to the AP.
More than 100 million people were in the path of Fani, as well as the city of Puri's 858-year-old Jagannath temple.
With the approach of the cyclone, airports closed for safety measures and more than 100 trains were canceled as the coast braced for impact.
The NOAA 20 satellite captured this image of an enormous and powerful Cyclone Fani churning over the Bay of Bengal on April 30, 2019, as it barreled toward India's east coast. (NOAA)
Fani made landfall Friday morning between 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. local time with wind speeds of 180-190 km/h (112-118 mph) with gusts to 200 km/h (124 mph), equal to the strength of a Category 3 hurricane in the Atlantic or East Pacific oceans.
Fani is the strongest cyclone this early in the year in the North Indian Ocean since Cyclone Nargis in 2008, according to Phil Klotzbach of Colorado State University.
By Friday evening, officials blamed multiple fatalities on the storm, according to CNN.
Earlier in the week, a late-season snowstorm brought a frosty conclusion to April in the Rocky Mountains, burying parts of Colorado, Wyoming and Montana in snow.
The highest snowfall totals were recorded in Highwood, Montana, where 29 inches fell, according to the National Weather Service (NWS).
Blizzard conditions were reported in the state Sunday into Monday. Roads closed throughout Montana as wind gusts reached up to 60 mph in some areas and blinding snow took its toll on road visibility.
A few places in Montana recorded new record minimum temperatures for April 29 according to NWS Great Falls. The new record set at Lewiston Airport of 10 degrees Fahrenheit broke the old record of 12 F, which was set over 100 years ago in 1903.
A few states away in Michigan, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer declared a state of emergency in Wayne County, following flooding that overwhelmed the area after the week's heavy rainfall according to the Associated Press.
About 3.6 inches of rain fell from Tuesday afternoon to the early hours of Wednesday morning according to the National Weather Service, and Wayne County Executive Warren Evans estimated about 3,000 homes in the county had been damaged by the rising waters.
Wayne County sits on the shore of Lake St. Claire and Lake Erie and consists of highly populated areas, such as Detroit.
Meanwhile, at least five people have been reported missing in La Paz, Bolivia, after a large-scale landslide buried part of the San Jorge Kantutani neighborhood.
The police general commander Yuri Calderón said in a press conference that about 66 houses were completely destroyed, and about 338 people have been affected by the catastrophe.
About 51 miles east of Bucharest, Romania's capital, a monstrous tornado tore through the plains of Calarasi County. The tornado lifted a bus carrying 39 people and threw it 20 meters into a nearby field. According to local Romanian media Libertatea, there were seven injuries and the tornado also damaged some agricultural vehicles and rural facilities.
A man in the area, Mircea Surcel, briefly filmed the tornado as it churned up dust clouds in a thick funnel.
Back in the U.S., five men are recovering after being trapped in an underground flooded cave in southwestern Virginia.
On Friday, April 26, six men had entered Cyclops Cave in Cleveland, Virginia, with the plan of going camping and exploring. However, the group had trouble climbing back out due to the narrow twists and turns and deep slopes of the cave combined with their climbing ropes becoming slippery after a heavy downpour Saturday night.
In the early hours of Sunday morning, one of the members of the group was able to climb out and seek help.
A view of the entrance to Cyclops Cave. (ABC Newsone)
Rescue efforts took up most of the day due to the small size of the cave.
The rescue of the other five men came nearly 48 hours after they had been trapped. The men suffered from mild hypothermia and exhaustion, but all of them are expected to be okay.
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