Severe Outbreak Moves East: Roads Flooded in Alabama; Tornadoes Reported in Florida

A large storm system that spawned more than a dozen tornadoes in the Plains pushed into the Deep South on Wednesday, one day after leaving damage in parts of the mid-South.

Tornadoes were reported in the Florida Panhandle Wednesday afternoon, while heavy rain left some Alabama roads flooded. Later in the afternoon and into the evening, the storms are expected to push into Georgia and cause more problems for travel.

(MORE: 3 Killed in Northwestern Storms)

Thousands remain without power across the South on Wednesday.

These severe storms, on the warm side of Winter Storm Ajax, are capable of producing damaging winds and hail in addition to tornadoes. 

Here's a roundup of damage reports and other storm-related impacts.

Alabama

Reports of flooding came in Wednesday afternoon across the state as heavy rainfall began to create problems for motorists. In northern Alabama, several reports of downed trees were also relayed to the National Weather Service.

Funnel clouds were spotted near Elba and Kinston in southern Alabama early Wednesday afternoon, according to NWS storm reports.

Arkansas

The Natural State saw widespread non-tornadic wind damage Tuesday afternoon and evening, especially in the town of Hot Springs.

The town's city hall building was damaged by the storms Tuesday afternoon, the Sentinel-Record reported via the Associated Press. Elsewhere in Hot Springs, scattered tree and power line damage was reported.

In the wake of the storms, the Hot Springs School District decided to cancel classes Wednesday, as announced on its Facebook page.

According to a local fire department, a roof on an outdoor stage at the Perry County Fairgrounds was ripped off by strong winds and blown about 40 yards away as the storms moved through. Tree damage was also reported in the area.

At the height of the outages, as many as 25,000 customers were without power statewide. By Wednesday morning, the number had dwindled to about 6,000.

(MORE: Tornado Outbreak Hits Southern Plains on Monday)

Trees were brought down in Hempstead County, and cabins were damaged along Lake Hamilton Drive in Garland County, the AP also reported.

A stretch of U.S. 67-167, a major link between Little Rock and its northeastern suburbs, was closed due to flooding near Jacksonville Tuesday afternoon, the AP said, but was reopened early Tuesday evening.

Flooding was also seen in Lonoke County near Mountain Springs Elementary School and in Pope County near the campus of Arkansas Tech University, according to social media reports.

KATV News has reported significant damage to an auto body shop in Grant County. The same report describes damage to a nearby home.

There have been no injuries reported from this round of storms.

Florida

Several tornadoes were reported in the Panhandle Wednesday afternoon, but there has been no confirmed damage thus far.

A possible waterspout was captured on video near Destin at about the same time.

Louisiana 

Northwestern Louisiana bore the brunt of the wind damage reports on Tuesday, with many centered around Shreveport. Reported wind gusts reached as high as 58 mph, and those winds were made even more dangerous by saturated ground that made it easier for trees to collapse.

In Bossier Parish, the town of Haughton saw an entire block of homes damaged by falling trees brought down by the strong wind gusts, the AP reported. Inside one of those homes was Glenn Dowden and his son Ben, who was home sick for the day. At about 11 a.m., a large tree crashed through their home, according to KTBS.com.

"In my den, the roof is all completely caved in," Dowden told KTBS.com. "You can't even see my dining room table in there, my living room the roof is all caved in ... The end of my house another tree hit it and took off all the wires to my house. It was pitch black inside so you couldn't see much in there."

Dowden and his son were uninjured in the incident, the report added.

Flooded roadways led to at least 27 accidents in Shreveport, the city's police department told the Shreveport Times.

Entergy Louisiana reported over 9,000 customers without power statewide, but that number is down below 1,000 Wednesday morning. Many schools and events were canceled on Tuesday in anticipation of the storms.

Mississippi

Of the six tornado reports from Tuesday in the South, all were in Mississippi. Each of those reports will be investigated by the NWS to determine whether they were actually tornadoes or just straight-line wind damage.

Those tornado reports were all in east-central Mississippi, according to the Storm Prediction Center. In the town of Scott, trees were brought down in several locations and a barn was destroyed by a reported tornado.

Elsewhere, power lines were brought down in the town of Leake, and a home suffered major damage to its tin roof near Highway 25. Two tornado reports were also relayed to the NWS from Winston County, where major tree damage was observed.

One person was injured during the severe weather. According to Winston County Emergency Management Director Buddy King, a man driving an 18-wheeler struck a tree on Highway 19. King did not identify the driver, but he told the AP that the man was treated for minor injuries at Winston Medical Center in Louisville.

Missouri 

Reports of flooded roadways were widespread in southern Missouri Tuesday afternoon and evening as the rainfall persisted. In some areas, more than a half-foot of rain was dumped by this storm system.

Many side streets had to be closed, especially those located near creeks that became swollen from all the rainfall.

(FORECAST: Severe Weather Outbreak)

Wind damage was minimal in the Show Me State as these storms passed through, but the National Weather Service did say tree and power line damage was reported near Doniphan, as well as wind damage to a carport in the same area.

Tennessee 

As the storm system arrived Tuesday in Tennessee, winds gusted as high as 57 mph in areas near Tracy City, according to local storm reports. More wind damage, mostly to trees, was reported Wednesday morning in southern and central parts of the state.

Memphis Light, Gas and Water reported nearly 5,200 customers affected by the severe weather. By Wednesday morning, that number had dropped under 3,000.

This is a developing story; please check back frequently for updates.