Millions under threat of strong tornadoes and violent winds as storm danger increases Friday

CNN An incredibly dangerous day of severe thunderstorms including the expected for long-lasting powerful tornadoes and hurricane-strength wind gusts is underway in the eastern half of the United States The threat for tornadoes and damaging winds is escalating Friday after the same system already produced destructive storms and tornadoes in the Midwest and Great Lakes Thursday It s all part of a multi-day threat of widespread severe weather that will stretch into early next week Here s the latest Storms are underway Severe thunderstorms are moving through parts of Missouri and Arkansas with more storms expected to develop through the afternoon and evening An extremely dangerous tornado tracked through part of St Louis Friday afternoon according to the National Weather Function Severe weather outbreak expected Nearly million people from Missouri to Kentucky are under a level -of- hazard of severe thunderstorms Friday with extensive wind damage large hail and tornadoes achievable Several strong tornadoes are expected and a long-track high-end tornado will be practicable the Storm Prediction Center warned Extensive wind damage achievable Friday s storms will form in an exceptionally volatile milieu the National Weather Function in Paducah Kentucky warned These storms will have a high threshold for damage and could produce widespread damaging wind gusts stronger than mph starting in the early evening Tornadoes and wind cause widespread damage Thursday s powerful storms left nearly homes and businesses in the dark across multiple Midwest states Friday morning as communities deal with the aftermath Wisconsin s Dodge County was hit particularly hard Critical damage was informed in the county and at least one person was taken to the hospital with injuries Powerful storms are roaring to life The atmosphere is supercharging a new round of severe thunderstorms after stormy weather that stretched from Arkansas to Kentucky Friday morning cleared out of the area Those morning storms shifted east into parts of the Appalachians in the early afternoon leaving the door open for explosive thunderstorm rise across the Mississippi and Ohio Valleys A regional outbreak of severe thunderstorms is likely this afternoon into tonight the SPC warned Friday adding several people in the path of storms will see intense supercells More than million people in the eastern half of the US are under at least a level -of- threat of severe thunderstorms on Friday but the greatest vulnerability of long-lasting EF -plus tornadoes and widespread damaging winds is centered on parts of the Mississippi and Ohio Valleys All severe weather hazards are on the table including damaging winds large hail tornadoes and torrential rainfall the National Weather Amenity in Louisville Kentucky warned A sparse strong tornadoes and instances of very large hail are workable Severe thunderstorms in Missouri and Arkansas in the afternoon were already posing a tornado and hail peril with additional storms expected to develop from Texas to Illinois Storms will expand rapidly in scope as they push east Initial storms are those bulk likely to become supercells capable of producing tornadoes damaging wind gusts and large hail That threat will continue into the evening before certain storms start to form unbroken lines The wind threat will increase once storms form lines with gusts stronger than mph and damage manageable over hundreds of miles Dangerous storms could continue after dark particularly in parts of Kentucky and areas east It s a threat to be especially mindful of as nighttime tornadoes are nearly twice as likely to be deadly as those occurring during the day a inquiry identified Severe weather leaves damage across Midwest At least tornadoes were published in Minnesota Wisconsin Illinois and Michigan as thunderstorms roared through the Midwest Thursday Major damage was published in Dodge County Wisconsin as a cluster of storms around the county prompted shelter-in-place alerts and displaced residents according to Sheriff Dale Schmidt One person was taken to the hospital with injuries in Juneau the sheriff commented Thursday adding there may have been another minor injury or two that occurred Several streets and highways in the county are closed due to downed power lines and trees Schmidt reported Multiple homes in Juneau were damaged and at least one house suffered a roof collapse Everyone inside was able to get out safely he added Powerful winds also roared through multiple states A weather reporting station on Lake Michigan near Chicago s Navy Pier recorded a hurricane-strength wind gust of mph in the evening Storms also slammed into Michigan taking down trees and power lines while damaging homes and businesses Multiple areas suffered structural damage in western Michigan s Allegan County according to the sheriff s office Martin Township was among the places impacted Storms caused vast amount of damage with a large number of downed trees and power lines though no injuries had been released as of Friday according to Martin Township Fire and Rescue Firefighters responded to calls overnight the agency commented More than homes and businesses across four Midwest states were still without power Friday afternoon including more than in Michigan according to PowerOutage us Michigan utility company Consumers Capacity mentioned assessments on power restoration are still waiting to be made according to CNN affiliate WNEM Damaging storm risks persist for days Severe thunderstorms are manageable in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast on Saturday as the same storm driving Thursday and Friday s threats pushes east Damaging wind gusts and hail are the greatest threats for now but a tornado can t be ruled out New storms could bring damaging wind gusts hail and tornadoes to parts of the southern Plains starting Saturday afternoon The Plains will remain the main focus of severe weather on Sunday and Monday as well with damaging storms feasible in much of Oklahoma and Kansas The severe thunderstorm threat will then shift back into parts of the Mississippi Valley on Tuesday More details about the exact risks these storms will pose and the populations under threat next week will become clear in the coming days