Storm-battered Midwest and South on high alert again for severe weather

Strong winds, floods and tornadoes are possible following devastating tornadoes in Michigan and Oklahoma last week.
Image: Tornado Leaves Multiple People Dead in Southwest Michigan
Damage and debris along Tuttle Road following a tornado that hit several cities in rural southwest Michigan on March 7 in Union City, Mich.Bill Pugliano / Getty Images
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Severe storms and isolated flash flooding are expected across the country over the next three days, beginning in the Southeast.

The multi-day event, which could bring strong winds, floods and tornadoes, comes as parts of the country are trying to recover from recent tornadoes that killed six people in Michigan and Oklahoma. The tornado risk continues this week for the Midwest and Southwest.

Five million people were at risk Monday for severe storms across the Southeast, stretching from central Arkansas to central Alabama. Threats include strong wind gusts, large hail, and a potential tornado.

The Midwest and southwest Texas will be on high alert Tuesday thanks to two clusters of storms that could bring 60 mph winds and flash flooding.

Straight-line winds from central Pennsylvania to central Louisiana will rush in as the middle of the week approaches, putting 27 million people at risk.

Deadly storms

Oklahoma is bracing for more severe weather, days after devastating tornadoes killed a mother and daughter in Fairview.

Jodie, 47, and Lexi Owens, 13, were found dead in a vehicle just west of Fairview about 10 p.m. Thursday. The pair were driving home after Jodie picked up Lexi from a friend's house, Jodie's brother Justin Zonts said.

Jodie, 47, and Lexi Owens, 13.
Jodie, 47, and Lexi Owens, 13.Courtesy Justin Zonts

Zonts said that the mother and daughter were racing home after receiving a tornado warning and had called and warned family at home to take shelter.

"She's telling them how they need to take cover. They've got a storm shelter put in their home. They just, they always try to be prepared," Zonts said. "But, unfortunately, she was on the phone with her daughter just as the storm hit."

"A tornado at night is sometimes essentially invisible, and she had, I'm sure, no idea that was right in front of her or coming right at her from the side," Zonts said.

He said his sister and niece were "constantly together" and joked they were attached at the hip.

Jodie and her husband, David, who have eight children, moved to Oklahoma in recent years, her brother said.

Last week's deadly tornado outbreak also struck Michigan, killing three people in the Union City area, as well as 12-year-old Silas Anderson in Cass County, Michigan.

Extreme Weather Michigan
Volunteers and residents look at the damage caused by a powerful storm that ripped through the area a day earlier, in Union City Mich., on March 7, 2026. Nam Y. Huh / AP

Edwardsburg Public Schools Superintendent confirmed his death in a letter to staff and families. "It is with a very heavy heart that I share the tragic passing of one of our sixth-grade students," the letter began.

William Andrew Akers, 63, Keri Ann Johnson, 54, and Penni Jo Guthrie, 65, were found dead in close proximity in the Union City area, according to the Branch County Sheriff's Office.

East Coast finally welcomes the warmth

The East Coast is finally seeing some warm weather after a bitterly cold winter.

New York City saw 69 degrees Sunday, marking the first 60-degree day since early November. It ended New York City's longest stretch of consecutive days below 60 degrees since the winter of 1981 to 1982.

In Florida, Tampa hit 90 degrees Sunday, making it the city's earliest 90-degree day on record.