Powerful storms left a trail of devastation across Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Kentucky over the Memorial Day weekend of 2024, claiming at least 22 lives and injuring hundreds more. The violent weather obliterated homes, destroyed a truck stop, and left many without power.
The severe weather struck hardest in a region from north of Dallas, Texas, to the northwest corner of Arkansas. With the storm system moving east, forecasters warned of continued threats to a broad area stretching from Alabama to near New York City.
Early Monday, May 27, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear declared a state of emergency in response to numerous reports of wind damage and tornadoes. Falling trees claimed two lives in Kentucky, with one person killed in Mercer County and another in Louisville. Beshear confirmed three more storm-related deaths during a Monday morning news conference and noted one individual was critically injured. “We believe at least a few tornadoes touched down, including one that stayed on the ground for at least 40 miles,” Beshear said. “One family who lost their home in the 2021 tornadoes lost their home again last night.”
In Valley View, Texas, close to the Oklahoma border, seven people were killed when a tornado ripped through a rural area near a mobile home park. Texas Governor Greg Abbott stated at a Sunday news conference that the deceased included two children, ages 2 and 5. “The hopes and dreams of Texas families and small businesses have been crushed by storm after storm,” Abbott remarked, highlighting the recurring severe weather in the state. In addition to the deaths, approximately 100 people were injured, and over 200 homes and structures were destroyed in Texas.
The storms also caused significant damage in Oklahoma and Arkansas. In Oklahoma, two people lost their lives in Mayes County, located east of Tulsa. Eight people died in Arkansas, where the storms destroyed houses and uprooted trees. Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders confirmed the fatalities, noting that two were related to the storm’s aftermath but not directly caused by the weather itself. One of the victims, a 26-year-old woman, was discovered outside a demolished home in Olvey, Arkansas.
Power outages were widespread, with 174,000 homes and businesses in Kentucky, 66,000 in West Virginia, 61,000 in Arkansas, 59,000 in Missouri, 6,000 in Texas, and 3,000 in Oklahoma without electricity. Beshear warned that some areas could be without power for days due to the extensive damage to power infrastructure.
The destruction extended to infrastructure, with winds reaching an estimated 135 mph in some areas. A truck stop in Valley View, Texas, was among the hardest-hit locations. Hugo Parra, a Farmers Branch, Texas resident, recounted his harrowing experience riding out the storm with 40 to 50 people in the truck stop’s bathroom. “The storm ripped off the building’s roof and walls, twisting metal beams and leaving damaged cars in the parking lot,” Parra recounted. A firefighter came to check on us and said, ‘You’re very lucky.’ It felt like the wind was dragging us out of the bathrooms.”
The storm’s aftermath left many communities shocked and searching for missing loved ones. In Pilot Point, Texas, Amber Bryan used her key fob to signal SOS after her RV was flipped by the tornado. “Thank God, just got some bruises, nothing broken,” Bryan said. “Everything happened so quickly. I prayed, ‘Lord, protect me and my pets and help us get through this.’”
Texas emergency responders conducted one final round of searches to ensure no one was overlooked. Abbott confirmed that no further deaths were anticipated, and there were no reports of anyone missing in Texas.
The severe weather disrupted the Memorial Day weekend for many, including the Indianapolis 500, which started four hours late due to a strong storm. The system was expected to bring more severe weather to Illinois, Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, and Virginia in the following days.
The recent storms are part of a troubling trend of severe weather in the central U.S. Earlier in the week, tornadoes in Iowa resulted in at least five fatalities and numerous injuries. Harold Brooks, a senior scientist at the National Severe Storms Laboratory in Norman, Oklahoma, linked the tornadoes to a consistent warm, moist air pattern. “Climate change is contributing to the severity of these storms,” Brooks explained, noting that April had the country’s second-highest number of tornadoes on record.
Residents in the affected areas woke up to scenes of destruction, with overturned cars, collapsed garages, and debris-strewn neighborhoods. In Valley View, Texas, clothing, insulation, and bits of plastic were wrapped around miles of barbed wire fencing. Kevin Dorantes, a resident of Carrollton, Texas, recalled discovering a family trapped beneath debris. “They were conscious but badly hurt,” Dorantes reported. The central U.S. remains on alert for more severe weather as the storm system moves east.
