Southeastern U.S. Faces Severe Storm, Tornado Risks This Week

(Bloomberg) -- Forecasters are warning of powerful thunderstorms in the coming days, with a 15% chance of severe storms, strong winds and tornadoes in several southeastern U.S. states by Saturday, according to the federal Storm Prediction Center.

A slight chance of extreme weather Wednesday will increase later in the week, said Liz Leitman, a government meteorologist in Oklahoma.

“We could see more widespread threats with tornadoes and severe winds as we head into the weekend,” she said. “It’s going to be an active period from Wednesday to Sunday, so pay close attention to the weather.”

The areas that could be affected include eastern Arkansas, northern Louisiana, much of Mississippi, northern Alabama and Middle Tennessee, Leitman said.

The predictions come after a wave of thunderstorms and tornadoes swept out of Nebraska and Kansas across the Midwest earlier this month, killing at least five people and leaving at least 438,000 homes and businesses without power. 

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