Photos: Damaging thunderstorms slam the central US with flooding, tornadoes
Severe thunderstorms spun up tornadoes across the central US on Tuesday from Oklahoma to Iowa, while heavy rain sparked flooding in Kansas.
On Tuesday morning, severe thunderstorms tracked across central Oklahoma with the strongest storms spinning up tornadoes near Oklahoma City. Midwest City, Oklahoma, was hit by one of these storms with a possible tornado flipping cars. No major injuries were reported following the morning storms.
Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin declared a state of emergency due to the severe weather across the state since late last week.
Severe thunderstorms blossomed over the central US again on Tuesday afternoon with the worst of the storms focusing on Iowa and northwestern Missouri.
Over a dozen tornadoes were reported across the region by National Weather Service (NWS) trained spotters.
A funnel cloud spotted near Centerville, Iowa, on Tuesday afternoon. (Photo/@MvilleSpotter)
At least two tornado-warned storms tracked over Interstate 80 in Iowa between Iowa City and Des Moines, temporarily slowing travel.
While severe thunderstorms caused property damage and power outages, heavy, persistent rainfall soaked Kansas and Nebraska.
Rainfall totals over two inches were common across much of central and eastern Kansas, leading to widespread flooding and road closures. Some school districts across the region were closed on Tuesday due to the flood threat.
The Neosho River and Missouri River both reached moderate flood stage on Tuesday and are likely to remain in a flood stage through much of the balance of the week as rainwater slowly drains downstream.
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