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

CNN An incredibly dangerous day of severe thunderstorms including the promising 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- vulnerability of severe thunderstorms Friday with extensive wind damage large hail and tornadoes doable Several strong tornadoes are expected and a long-track high-end tornado will be viable the Storm Prediction Center warned Extensive wind damage attainable Friday s storms will form in an exceptionally volatile atmosphere the National Weather Amenity 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 Crucial damage was announced 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 progress across the Mississippi and Ohio Valleys A regional outbreak of severe thunderstorms is likely this afternoon into tonight the SPC warned Friday adding certain 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 jeopardy 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 Arrangement in Louisville Kentucky warned A minimal strong tornadoes and instances of very large hail are accomplishable Severe thunderstorms in Missouri and Arkansas in the afternoon were already posing a tornado and hail jeopardy with additional storms expected to develop from Texas to Illinois Storms will expand rapidly in scope as they push east Initial storms are those most of likely to become supercells capable of producing tornadoes damaging wind gusts and large hail That threat will continue into the evening before specific storms start to form unbroken lines The wind threat will increase once storms form lines with gusts stronger than mph and damage viable 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 survey discovered Severe weather leaves damage across Midwest At least tornadoes were shared in Minnesota Wisconsin Illinois and Michigan as thunderstorms roared through the Midwest Thursday Crucial damage was shared 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 mentioned 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 noted 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 multiple downed trees and power lines though no injuries had been informed as of Friday according to Martin Township Fire and Rescue Firefighters responded to calls overnight the agency declared 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 Vigor announced assessments on power restoration are still waiting to be made according to CNN affiliate WNEM Damaging storm risks persist for days Severe thunderstorms are workable 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