A line of severe thunderstorms is expected to bring damaging winds and a threat of dangerous tornadoes to the Ohio Valley.
Many schools across Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana announced closures or early dismissals Tuesday ahead of the storms.
Intense, long-track tornadoes are in the forecast into Tuesday evening for Ohio to Kentucky, including the cities of Cincinnati and Louisville.
Tornado watches are in effect from northeastern Mississippi to southern Ohio. There have been numerous reports of flash flooding in eastern Ohio on Tuesday.
“Ohio really has a bull’s-eye directly on us,” Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine told reporters earlier Tuesday. “It’s a very, very serious situation. … People just need to be very, very careful.”
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear declared a state of emergency Tuesday afternoon, saying there are “reports of substantial damage to a number of structures.” He added officials are not aware of any fatalities.
Severe weather outbreak.
ABC News
Severe thunderstorms — including tornadoes and powerful wind gusts — are possible for a large swath of the country, from Columbus, Ohio; to Charleston, West Virginia; to Nashville, Tennessee; to Birmingham, Alabama; to Columbus, Georgia.
In West Virginia, power has been knocked out to more than 130,000 customers.
From Monday afternoon to Tuesday afternoon, at least nine tornadoes were reported across four states: three in Oklahoma, three in Kentucky, one in Missouri, one in Indiana and one in Illinois.
Storm damage is shown in Nelson County, Kentucky, on April 2, 2024.
Brad Metcalf of Nelson County Emergency Management
A damaged building is shown in Vanderburgh County, Indiana, on April 2, 2024, after a storm rolled through the area.
WEHT
Meanwhile, flood watches are in effect from Indiana to New Jersey, with cities including Indianapolis, Pittsburgh, Washington, D.C., and Philadelphia expected to be hit the hardest.
Two to 3 inches of rain has already inundated Pittsburgh, where a flash flood warning is in effect.