A supercell shown west of Norman, Oklahoma on Wednesday, April 19. Photo: National Weather Service Norman/Twitter
A severe storm system unleashed strong winds and hail over the Central U.S. and spawned several tornadoes from Wednesday night into Thursday morning — including one in Oklahoma that authorities saidkilledat least three people.
The big picture: The National Weather Service issued severe thunderstorm warnings across the region on Wednesday night, along with tornado watches and warnings for six states: Kansas, Missouri,Nebraska, Iowa, Texas and Oklahoma. More storms could affect a broad region on Thursday.
Of note: McClain County Emergency Management confirmed a "large and extremely dangerous tornado" over Cole, Oklahoma, was moving east at 30 mph in the evening.
The McClain County Sheriff's office said Thursday at least three peopledied when the tornado struck. It also damaged buildings in the town.
The National Weather Service also confirmed a "dangerous tornado" in Shawnee, Oklahoma, where images showed trees down and damage to Oklahoma Baptist University.
By the numbers: Nearly 17,000 customers were without power Thursday morning in Oklahoma, according to utility tracker poweroutage.us.
Context: The storms were sparked when a surge of cold, dry air moving in from the west, colliding with a warm, humid air mass surging northward from the Gulf of Mexico.
Unstable air built up during the day on Wednesday, and an air mass boundary plus energy in the form of strong jet stream winds triggered the storms.
What's next: More severe weather is forecast on Thursday from Texas northward into Illinois.
Cities at greatest risk of seeing strong to severe storms with damaging winds, large hail and a few tornadoes include Houston, San Antonio, Dallas, Austin and Fort Worth, Texas.
Chicago, Little Rock, Milwaukee, Memphis and Corpus Christi, Texas could also see rough weather move through.
Yes, but: The National Weather Service does not expect a widespread tornado outbreak on Thursday.
Editor's note: This story was updated with additional context and new developments.
