Fast-moving storms batter the Midwest, flooding streets and stranding commuters

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Fast-moving storms pummeled parts of the Midwest with hail, strong wind and heavy rain Monday, flooding streets and leading to stranded commuters who needed to be rescued, with more storms on the way, authorities said.

More than 64 million people in the Midwest were at risk of severe storms into the afternoon and evening, with the St. Louis region at moderate risk for multiple long-track tornadoes and large hail, the National Weather Service said.

“The greatest area of concern is across central Missouri into southern Illinois and into southeast Missouri,” Evan Bentley, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Oklahoma, said on X.

Bentley later told reporters that temperatures near 80 degrees Fahrenheit (26 degrees Celsius) and other factors were contributing to “atmospheric instability.”

Hundreds of schools in the St. Louis area closed early, and many after-school activities were canceled. Temporary afternoon tornado warnings were posted in the region as well as across the Missouri border in southwestern Illinois.

We Energies in Wisconsin reported more than 40,000 power outages at homes and businesses in and around Milwaukee. The city said it had nearly 100 emergency calls for downed trees and branches. Trees uprooted by strong winds blocked streets.

In Kansas City, Missouri, the fire department responded to 11 water rescues from vehicles starting at shortly before 6 a.m., Battalion Chief Riley Nolan said in an email.

He said most “were in our typical ‘high-water’ areas following heavy rains.” Nolan said no boats were required and no injuries were reported.

The weather service reported that 3.2 inches (8.1 centimeters) of rain fell in a six-hour period ending shortly before 7 a.m. at the Kansas City International Airport.

The storms followed rounds of violent weather over the weekend.

In northern Texas, a tornado-producing thunderstorm left at least two people dead and displaced at least 20 families, with many homes sustaining major damage, authorities said Sunday.

National Weather Service teams confirmed that an EF-2 tornado with peak winds of 135 mph (217 kph) touched down in the Runaway Bay area on Saturday. An EF-1 tornado with peak winds of 105 mph (169 kph) was confirmed in the Springtown area, the weather service said.