The threat of severe weather over the Memorial Day weekend continued into Sunday, with more dangerous weather spreading across parts of the Mississippi, Tennessee and Ohio valleys.
Severe thunderstorms have already spawned deadly tornadoes in parts of Texas, Arkansas and Oklahoma this weekend, killing at least 10 people.
Thunderstorms on Saturday produced deadly tornadoes and dangerous weather overnight, but showers and thunderstorms are expected throughout the day on Sunday, which could affect the event. Some areas may experience two separate storms, one in the morning and one in the afternoon.
The main threat on Sunday will be the same as Saturday, with more tornadoes possible, wind gusts of up to 75 mph and large hail.
The National Weather Service issued a tornado watch for southern Indiana, western and central Kentucky and western and central Tennessee, in effect until 3 p.m.
Multiple tornado warnings had already been issued Sunday morning as the storm moved across Missouri and Kentucky, where tornadoes were spotted on radar.
NOAA’s Storm Prediction Center put the risk of severe weather at Level 3 out of 5 for areas with about 16 million residents, including St. Louis, Missouri; Nashville, Tennessee; Cincinnati, Ohio; and Louisville, Kentucky.
The region also includes Indianapolis, Indiana, where the famous Indy 500 race is scheduled to take place Sunday morning, and organizers are already preparing for a possible storm.
Indianapolis Motor Speedway officials suspended pre-race ceremonies and asked fans to evacuate the grandstands and the Snake Pit after lightning was detected in the area Sunday.
Pre-race ceremonies were suspended on Sunday as thunderstorms moved through the area, and officials instructed fans to evacuate the stands and the Snake Pit until the lightning subsided.
The initial storm on Sunday left more than 200,000 customers without power in Kentucky.
Gov. Andy Beshear warned Residents in the Bluegrass State were urged to be on alert for the next storm, expected later in the day.
Another 36 million people, including residents of Chicago, Illinois; Memphis, Tennessee; and Charlotte, North Carolina, are currently at risk of severe weather at Level 2 out of 5.
Luckily for travelers, many will have already reached their destinations by Sunday, but travelers on Interstates 40, 70, 55 and 65 should pay close attention to the weather forecast.
Severe weather threat moves into Mid-Atlantic on Memorial Day
Rain and thunderstorms are expected to spread across a wide area of the eastern third of the U.S. on Monday, but severe weather is much less likely than it has been over the past two days.
The SPC said more than 27 million people along the Mid-Atlantic coast, including Washington, DC, Baltimore, Maryland, and Charlotte, North Carolina, are under threat of Level 2 severe weather.
