Lightning strikes in Haltom City in this image uploaded to our web site by a user in that city.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — A strong storm system is expected to bring hail, heavy rain and possibly tornadoes to parts of Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas.

The National Weather Service says the storms are expected to develop Friday afternoon and could impact northern Texas, eastern Oklahoma and most of Arkansas.

Golf ball sized hail, damaging wind gusts and heavy rains creating a risk of flash flooding are the primary risks, but the weather service says isolated tornadoes are also possible throughout the region.

The weather service says the severe weather is expected to end on Saturday. </s> A strong storm system is expected to bring hail, heavy rain and possibly tornadoes to parts of Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas.

The National Weather Service says the storms are expected to develop Friday afternoon and could impact northern Texas, eastern Oklahoma and most of Arkansas.

Golf ball sized hail, damaging wind gusts and heavy rains creating a risk of flash flooding are the primary risks, but the weather service says isolated tornadoes are also possible throughout the region.

The weather service says the severe weather is expected to end on Saturday. </s> Multiple tornadoes ripped through a town in eastern Texas on Saturday evening, killing at least four people and injuring dozens of others, according to authorities, who warned the number of casualties could rise.

Three tornadoes were confirmed by the U.S. National Weather Service in Canton, a city about 60 miles (95 kilometres) east of Dallas.

"We have at least four fatalities," Canton Mayor Lou Ann Everett said at a news conference on Sunday. "It is a very fluid situation and that could change later today." Forty nine people had been treated for injuries, she said.

Earlier local media reports said five people had died, citing the Canton fire department.

Pictures and video posted online showed cars flipped over and two-story houses in the area all but destroyed.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott deployed a search and rescue team to the area.

Downpours that began on Friday were so intense the ground was unable to absorb the rainfall, making flooding highly likely, said meteorologist Kenneth James of the Weather Prediction Center, part of the National Weather Service.

More than six inches of rain fell in some areas, flooding roads and prompting evacuations, meteorologists said.

The governors of Missouri and Oklahoma declared states of emergency due to flooding.

In the St. Louis area, severe thunderstorms are forecast through Sunday. Some people were told to evacuate and 33 rescues were conducted, mostly in the state's central and southwestern regions, Missouri Governor Eric Greitens said.

Parts of Indiana received up to 8 inches (20 cm) of rain while areas in Oklahoma, Missouri and Arkansas have been drenched with up to 4 inches (10 cm), James said.

Heavy rainfall in the Midwest was expected to continue on Sunday, along with wind gusts of 60 miles (95 km) per hour. </s> KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A severe storm system pummeled parts of the Midwest overnight with tornadoes, huge hailstones and powerful winds, damaging dozens of buildings and injuring at least 10 people in Missouri.

The Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Oklahoma, received reports of 32 tornadoes in Kansas, Missouri, Iowa and Illinois late Monday and early Tuesday. Powerful winds extended as far south as the Ozark Mountains in Arkansas, where a post office and church were damaged, and as far north as Wisconsin, where trees were downed.

The Kansas City area sustained widespread damage, and crews planned to survey and assess the damage early Tuesday.

Dan Hawblitzel, a National Weather Service meteorologist based in Pleasant Hill, Missouri, said there were corridors of significant damage in Oak Grove east of Kansas City, Smithville north of Kansas City and the Kansas suburbs of Leawood and Olathe. Hawblitzel said there were no immediate reports of fatalities from the storms.

“It played out as we expected — several tornadoes and a lot of wind damage,” Hawblitzel said. “It’s certainly sad to see and hear about the homes destroyed.”

Oak Grove Emergency Management Director Mark Sherwood said about 20 homes were damaged or destroyed in and near the city. Ten to 15 people were hurt, but none had life-threatening injuries, he said.

The late-winter storms spawned warnings from the Southern Plains to the Upper Midwest. Baseball-sized hail was reported in parts of Missouri, while hurricane-force winds were reported in parts of Iowa. The storm system was weakening as it moved to the east but the Storm Prediction Center said parts of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama could see severe thunderstorms Tuesday. </s> Tornadoes, storms kill nine in US South

A business damaged by tornadoes is seen in Canton, Texas, April 30, 2017. — Reuters pic

CANTON (Texas), May 1 — Tornadoes ripped through an East Texas county yesterday evening, killing at least four people and injuring dozens of others, while high winds, falling trees and floods killed five others in neighboring states, according to news reports.

Three tornadoes were confirmed by the US National Weather Service in Canton, a city about 95km east of Dallas in Van Zandt County.

The winds flipped over cars, snapped trees, destroyed houses and left roads strewn with debris and fallen power lines, according to photographs and video published by the Dallas Morning News.

“We have at least four fatalities,” Canton Mayor Lou Ann Everett said at a news conference on Sunday, adding that number could rise.

“The damage was extensive in the affected area. It is heartbreaking and upsetting.”

Forty nine people had been treated for injuries, she said.

Earlier a Canton fire department captain said he believed five people had been killed.

The mayor urged people to stay away from a sprawling flea market known as First Monday Trade Days, as crews tried to clean up debris.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott deployed a search and rescue team to the area.

The storms caused floods in neighboring states, killing a 72-year-old woman in southwestern Missouri who was washed away in her car, according to local media reports.

In Arkansas, a woman was killed when a tree fell on her mobile home in DeWitt, and a 10-year-old girls was killed after flood waters swept her away in Springdale, ABC News reported.

A fire chief reponding to the storm was killed yesterday in Cleburne County, the county sheriff said.

In Mississippi, a person was killed after a tree fell on their house in Durant, ABC reported.

The governors of Missouri and Oklahoma declared states of emergency due to flooding.

In the St. Louis area, severe thunderstorms were forecast through yesterday.

Some people were told to evacuate and 33 rescues were conducted, mostly in the state’s central and southwestern regions, Missouri Governor Eric Greitens said.

Parts of Indiana received up to 20cm of rain while areas in Oklahoma, Missouri and Arkansas were drenched with up to 10cm, James said.

Heavy rainfall in the Midwest was expected to continue yesterday, along with wind gusts of 95kph.

Flash floods and strong thunderstorms were forecast for parts of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama yesterday, the National Weather Service said. — Reuters </s> Three tornadoes were confirmed by the U.S. National Weather Service in Canton, a city about 60 miles (95 km) east of Dallas in Van Zandt County.

Tornadoes ripped through an East Texas county on Saturday evening, killing at least four people and injuring dozens, while high winds, falling trees and floods killed five in neighboring states, according to news reports.

Three tornadoes were confirmed by the U.S. National Weather Service in Canton, a city about 60 miles (95 km) east of Dallas in Van Zandt County.

The winds flipped over cars, snapped trees, destroyed houses and left roads strewn with debris and fallen power lines, according to photographs and video published by the Dallas Morning News.

"We have at least four fatalities," Canton Mayor Lou Ann Everett said at a news conference on Sunday, adding that number could rise. "The damage was extensive in the affected area. It is heartbreaking and upsetting." Forty-nine people had been treated for injuries, she said.

Earlier a Canton fire department captain said he believed five people had been killed.

The mayor urged people to stay away from a sprawling flea market known as First Monday Trade Days, as crews tried to clean up debris.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott sent a search and rescue team to the area.

The storms caused floods in neighboring states, killing a 72-year-old woman in southwestern Missouri who was washed away in her car, according to local media reports.

In Arkansas, a woman was killed when a tree fell on her mobile home in DeWitt, and a 10-year-old girl was killed after flood waters swept her away in Springdale, ABC News reported. A fire chief responding to the storm was killed on Sunday in Cleburne County, the county sheriff said

At least two other people reportedly died in storm-related incidents, while two children were missing after their mother’s car was swept from a road by floodwaters in Madison County. As many as 100,000 homes and businesses lost power, and Gov. Asa Hutchinson declared a state of emergency on Sunday night.

In Mississippi, a person was killed after a tree fell on their house in Durant, ABC reported. The governors of Missouri and Oklahoma declared states of emergency.

In the St. Louis area, severe thunderstorms were forecast through Sunday. Some people were told to evacuate and 33 rescues were conducted, mostly in the state's central and southwestern regions, Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens said. </s> NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Powerful thunderstorms were lighting up radar monitors and prompting multiple tornado warnings from Louisiana to Alabama as severe storms brought hail, high winds and possible twisters to the New Orleans area.

Radar indicated a large tornado near the city’s Lakefront Airport, and another large tornado was reported near Madisonville in St. Tammany Parish, north of Lake Pontchartrain, the National Weather Service said.

In nearby Livingston Parish, sheriff’s office spokeswoman Lori Steele said officials were investigating wind damage reported in the town of Killian on Tuesday morning. Officials were working to confirm two possible tornado sightings in the area

One of the warnings described a “large, extremely dangerous and potentially deadly” twister south of Hammond, Louisiana.

The national Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Oklahoma, said 2.7 million people in parts of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama would be at the highest risk of severe weather on Tuesday. In Louisiana, tornado watches covered New Orleans and Baton Rouge. In Mississippi, a tornado watch covered the southern half of the state. In Alabama, the city of Mobile was in the storm’s path. </s> KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Latest on severe storms affecting parts of the U.S. (all times local):

Forecasters say a massive, late-winter storm system spawned tornadoes, baseball-sized hail and damaging winds in an area stretching from Oklahoma to Wisconsin.

The Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Oklahoma, says it received 32 reports of tornadoes late Monday and early Tuesday in Kansas, Missouri, Iowa and Illinois. Powerful winds extended as far south as the Ozark Mountains in Arkansas, where a post office and church were damaged, and as far north as Wisconsin, where trees were downed.

Emergency management officials say about 10 to 15 injuries have been reported in Oak Grove, Missouri, about 25 miles east of Kansas City.

The storm system is losing steam as it moves out of the Midwest, but forecasters say parts of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama could see severe thunderstorms Tuesday.

Crews plan to assess the damage Tuesday after the National Weather Service says at least two tornadoes touched down in Missouri.

Several homes were damaged or destroyed in the Kansas City area Monday night as a line of severe storms moved across the state.

Oak Grove Emergency Management Director Mark Sherwood says a tornado damaged about 20 homes in the town and 10 to 15 people suffered non-life-threatening injuries.

In Smithville, north of Kansas City, Police Chief Jason Lockridge says 20 to 25 homes were damaged. Local media reports also described damage to planes and hangars at the Johnson County Executive Airport in Olathe, Kansas.

The website for the utility company Kansas City Power & Light showed about 40,000 customers without power early Tuesday. That's down from more than 100,000 late Monday night.

Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. We strive to uphold our values for every story published. </s> CLOSE Violent storms produced flooding and tornadoes in parts of Texas and Louisiana. At least five people were killed by the severe weather. USA TODAY

Violent storms unleashed floods and tornadoes across Texas and Louisiana on Wednesday and Thursday, leaving at least five people dead.

The threat for rough weather will continue Friday, the National Weather Service said. Severe thunderstorms are possible across the mid-Atlantic region, and strong winds and tornadoes are both possible in eastern portions of North Carolina and Virginia.

Two people were killed early Thursday in Ruston, in north-central Louisiana, after a tornado ripped through the town and the Louisiana Tech University campus around 2:30 a.m. local time.

"I've never seen it this bad in my 43 years. It's tragic, and it's going to be a while before we can get all this cleaned up," Lincoln Parish Sheriff Mike Stone said.

Ruston Mayor Ronny Walker confirmed the two fatalities.

"It's bad; real bad," Walker said. "We took a direct hit."

Late Thursday afternoon, Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards declared a state of emergency for the entire state due to the fierce storms.

The National Weather Service said the tornado was rated an EF-3, which means its wind speeds were in the 136 to 165 mph range.

Weather service hydrologist C. S. Ross says it appears the tornado cut a track over 130 miles from eastern Texas to the Louisiana-Arkansas border.

The same cluster of thunderstorms produced flooding and severe weather in Texas on Wednesday, the Weather Channel reported.

THE AFTERMATH - We're live over Ruston as we get our first view of tornado damage seen in the daylight over the region. These storms did kill at least two people as confirmed by the mayor earlier. pic.twitter.com/kAK5vIHcUT — WeatherNation (@WeatherNation) April 25, 2019

About 75 miles southwest of Fort Worth, a woman and two children were killed when the family's car was caught in rushing flood waters, authorities said. The incident occurred at about 6 a.m. in what's usually a small creek just outside Dublin.

The Weather Channel said the threat of severe weather, including possible large hail and tornadoes, will continue to move into the Southeast on Thursday night before shifting toward the mid-Atlantic on Friday.

A long-tracked supercell thunderstorm crossed from Deep East Texas into west-central Louisiana and into the ArkLaMiss overnight. We will be surveying along this swath over the next several days. At this time, we cannot confirm a tornado was on the ground along this entire path. pic.twitter.com/Ieuk3yUZBw — NWS Shreveport (@NWSShreveport) April 25, 2019

Thursday's opening of the New Orleans Jazz Fest was delayed because of the storms, the event organizers said. The PGA golf tournament in New Orleans was also delayed for several hours because of lightning.

Contributing: The Associated Press; The News-Star (Monroe, La.)

Storms smashed through Lincoln Parish, Louisiana, early on April 25, 2019. (Photo: News-Star)

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A severe storm system brings tornado watches and warnings throughout the U.S. states of Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, and Missouri. A "large and dangerous" tornado is confirmed near Gore, Oklahoma. Several other tornadoes are seen by storm chasers.