Storms kill 7 in the South and Midwest as forecasters warn of catastrophic rains, floods this week

LAKE CITY, Ark. (AP) — Standing alongside the twisted steel tractors on his family farm in northeast Arkansas on Thursday, Danny Qualls looked on while friends and relatives helped him begin cleaning up.

The home where he spent his childhood but no longer lives was flattened by one of many tornadoes that left behind destruction from Oklahoma to Indiana — the first in a round of storms expected to bring historic rains and life-threatening flash floods across the nation’s midsection in the coming days.

“My husband has been extremely tearful and emotional, but he also knows that we have to do the work,” Rhonda Qualls said. “He was in shock last night, cried himself to sleep.”

At least seven people were killed in Tennessee, Missouri and Indiana in the initial wave on Wednesday and early Thursday that spawned powerful tornadoes — one of which launched light debris nearly 5 miles (8 kilometers) into the air above Arkansas.

Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee said it was too early to know whether there were more deaths as searches persisted.

“The devastation is enormous. What’s most difficult about it is, you know that those are lives destroyed,” Lee said in the hard-hit town of Selmer. “In some cases, true life lost, but in other cases, everything people owned, up in trees.”

Lee said during an evening news conference that entire neighborhoods in Selmer were “completely wiped out” and warned people across the state not to let their guard down with more severe weather predicted.

Those who died included a Tennessee man and his teen daughter whose home was destroyed, and a man whose pickup struck downed power lines in Indiana. In Missouri, 68-year-old Garry Moore, who was chief of the Whitewater Fire Protection District, died while likely trying to help a stranded motorist, according to Highway Patrol spokesperson Sgt. Clark Parrott.

Forecasters warned Thursday of catastrophic weather soon ahead. Satellite imagery showed thunderstorms lining up like freight trains — taking the same tracks over communities in Arkansas, Tennessee and Kentucky, according to the national Weather Prediction Center in Maryland.

The bull's-eye centered on a swath along the Mississippi River and included the more than 1.3 million people around Memphis, Tennessee.

More than 90 million people were at risk of severe weather from Texas to Minnesota to Maine, according to the Oklahoma-based Storm Prediction Center.

Round after round of heavy rains were expected in the central U.S. through Saturday and could produce dangerous flash floods capable of sweeping away cars. The potent storm system will bring “significant, life-threatening flash flooding” each day, the National Weather Service said.

With more than a foot (30 centimeters) of rain possible over the next four days, the prolonged deluge is something that “happens once in a generation to once in a lifetime,” the weather service said. “Historic rainfall totals and impacts are possible.”

Water rescue teams and sandbagging operations were being staged across the region, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency was ready to distribute food, water, cots and generators.

Water rescues were already underway in flooded parts of Nashville, Tennessee, where the rain could persist for days after an unnerving night of tornado warnings that drained the batteries of some city sirens, the fire department said.

Western Kentucky braced for record rain and flooding in places that normally do not get inundated, Gov. Andy Beshear said. At least 25 state highways were swamped, mostly in the west, according to a statement from his office.

Flash flooding is particularly worrisome in rural areas of the state where water can quickly rush off the mountains into the hollows. Less than four years ago, dozens died in flooding across eastern Kentucky.

Extreme flooding across the corridor that includes Louisville, Kentucky, and Memphis, which have major cargo hubs, could also lead to shipping and supply chain delays, said Jonathan Porter, chief meteorologist at AccuWeather.

Forecasters attributed the violent weather to warm temperatures, an unstable atmosphere, strong wind shear and abundant moisture streaming from the Gulf.

Under darkened skies Thursday morning, the remains of a used car dealership in Selmer stood roofless and gutted, with debris scattered across the car lot and wrapped around mangled trees. Some homes were leveled to their foundations in the Tennessee town, where three tornadoes were suspected of touching down.

“Thank God we came out without a scratch,” said Willie Barnes, who had only enough time to get into a bathroom with his wife before the storm wrecked his home.

The Tennessee Highway Patrol released video of lightning illuminating the sky as first responders scoured the ruins of a home, looking for anyone trapped.

In neighboring Arkansas, a tornado near Blytheville lofted debris at least 25,000 feet (7.6 kilometers) high, according to weather service meteorologist Chelly Amin. The state's emergency management office reported damage in 22 counties from tornadoes, wind, hail and flash flooding.

Workers on bulldozers cleared rubble along the highway that crosses through Lake City, where a tornado with winds of 150 mph (241 kph) sheared roofs off homes, collapsed brick walls and tossed cars into trees.

Mississippi's governor said at least 60 homes were damaged. And in far western Kentucky, four people were injured while taking shelter in a vehicle under a church carport, according to the emergency management office in Ballard County.

This story has been updated to correct that Lake City is in northeast Arkansas, not northwest.

Walker IV reported from Selmer, Tennessee, and Seewer from Toledo, Ohio. Associated Press writers Andrew DeMillo in Little Rock, Arkansas; Jonathan Mattise in Nashville, Tennessee, Seth Borenstein in Washington; Isabella O'Malley in Philadelphia; Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire; Bruce Schreiner in Louisville, Kentucky; Jeff Martin in Atlanta; Hallie Golden in Seattle; and Ed White in Detroit contributed.

Lisa Davis reviews paperwork in a business that was damaged in the Triad Building, a business plaza, after severe weather passed through Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

Mike Davis moves debris from a damaged business in the Triad Building, a business plaza, after severe weather passed through Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

A storm damaged home is seen Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Selmer, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

People remove items from a business damaged in the Triad Building, a business plaza, after severe weather passed through on Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

In an aerial view, damaged structures are seen at the Triad Building, a business plaza, after severe weather passed through Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

Storm damaged homes and broken trees are seen Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Selmer, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Rep. David Kustoff, R-Tenn., speaks about the storm damage during news conference Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Selmer, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Debris and goods are removed from damaged businesses in the Triad Building, a business plaza, after severe weather passed through Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

People remove debris from a damaged business in the Triad Building, a business plaza, after severe weather passed through on Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

In an aerial view the interior of a damaged business is seen at the Triad Building, a business plaza, after severe weather passed through on Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

Daniel Fraser carries a computer in the damaged second floor offices of Specialty Distributors after a tornado passed through an industrial industrial park on Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Jeffersontown, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

A storm damaged home is seen Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Selmer, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

The interior of the destroyed Gordon-Hardy building after a severe weather passed through an industrial industrial park on Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Jeffersontown, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

Gov. Bill Lee speaks about the storm damage during a news conference Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Selmer, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Storm damaged homes are seen Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Selmer, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Damaged equipment sits on a farm struck by Wednesday night's tornado on Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Lake City, Ark. (AP Photo/Adrian Sainz)

Danny Qualls speaks with a reporter about damage to his family farm on Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Lake City, Ark. (AP Photo/Adrian Sainz)

Lauren Fraser picks up paperwork in the damaged second floor offices of Specialty Distributors after a tornado passed through an industrial industrial park on Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Jeffersontown, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

Dana Hardin, a 25-year former employee of Gordon-Hardy, which was destroyed, looks on near the debris of the KEP Electric building after a tornado passed through an industrial industrial park on Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Jeffersontown, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

A shipping and receiving bay door is damaged along with the interior of the Gordon-Hardy building after a tornado passed through an industrial industrial park on Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Jeffersontown, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

A specialty distributors building is in ruins after a tornado passed through an industrial park on Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Jeffersontown, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

William Fraser takes photographs inside the warehouse of a damaged building of Specialty Distributors after a tornado passed through an industrial industrial park on Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Jeffersontown, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

A home is in ruins after severe weather passed through Lake City, Ark., on Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Adrian Sainz)

People clean up a damaged warehouse after severe weather passed the area in Carmel, Ind., Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

A resident along Tippah County Rd. 122 in the Three Forks Community near Walnut, Miss., makes his way down his driveway Thursday, April 3, 205, to inspect the tornado damage in the daylight hours. (Thomas Wells /The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal via AP)

Family and friends begin picking up whats left of a house that was ripped off it's foundation and thrown over 75 feet away along Tippah County Rd. 122 in the Three Forks Community near Walnut Miss., Thursday, April 3, 2025. (Thomas Wells /The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal via AP)

A piece of home decor rests inside a claw foot bathtub that was thrown from it's house along Tippah County Rd. 122 in the Three Forks Community near Walnut Miss., Thursday, April 3, 2025. (Thomas Wells /The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal via AP)

People look over the debris around a home at Lake City, Ark., on Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Adrian Sainz)

Willy Barns gathers cloths at his house after severe weather passed the area in Selmer, Tenn., Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Jamar Atkins helps to clean up a house after severe weather passed through Selma, Tenn., Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Jamar Atkins helps to clean up Willy Brown's house after severe weather passed the area in Selma, Tenn., Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Titan Atkins cleans up his grandmother's house after severe weather passed the area in Selma, Tenn., Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

A damaged truck sits under a section of collapsed warehouse wall after violent storms and tornadoes tore through the area on Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Jeffersontown, KY. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

A car drives through a flooded section of road near Lions Park Beach Wednesday, April 2, 2025, in St. Joseph, Mich., after heavy storms moved through Southwest Michigan. (Don Campbell/The Herald-Palladium via AP)

A tractor trailer from an O'Reilly warehouse sits on its side after severe weather passed the area in Brownsburg, Ind., Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Brownsburg irefighters survey storm damage to a warehouse in Brownsburg, Ind., Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

A smashed truck sits under a section of collapsed warehouse wall after violent storms and tornadoes tore through the area on Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Jeffersontown, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

In an aerial view, a smashed truck sits under a section of collapsed warehouse wall after violent storms and tornadoes tore through the area on Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Jeffersontown, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

A trailer sits on top of a semi truck parked at J & J Transportation on Thursday, April 3, 2025, in Jeffersontown, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

Brownsburg firefighters survey storm damage to a warehouse in Brownsburg, Ind., Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Debris litter the parking lot from storm damage to a warehouse in Brownsburg, Ind., Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Brownsburg irefighters survey storm damage to a warehouse in Brownsburg, Ind., Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Warehouse workers gather at the site of a storm damaged warehouse in Brownsburg, Ind., Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Storm damage from severe weather on Sunday at a farm along 84th Street near Hanna Lake Avenue in Gaines Twp., Mich. on Monday, March 31, 2025. (Joel Bissell/MLive.com/Kalamazoo Gazette via AP)

A barn that collapsed from Sunday's severe storm along 92nd Street SE in Gaines Twp., Mich., on Monday, March 31, 2025. (Joel Bissell/MLive.com/Kalamazoo Gazette via AP)

Gary Deripaska, left, cleans up storm damage at his home off 96th Street North just west of Garnett Road, Wednesday, April 2, 2025, in Owasso, Okla. (Mike Simons/Tulsa World via AP)

A toppled tree with its roots showing on Woodworth Street in Linden, Mich., on Tuesday, April 1, 2025. (Jacob Hamilton/Ann Arbor News via AP)

An aerial image of a barn that collapsed after a severe storm hit Sunday along 92nd Street SE in Gaines Twp., Mich., on Monday, March 31, 2025. (Joel Bissell/MLive.com/Kalamazoo Gazette via AP)

An early morning severe storm damaged homes, destroying the roofs and knocked down power lines, trees, and fences off 96th Street North near Garnett Road, Wednesday, April 2, 2025, in Owasso, Okla. (Mike Simons/Tulsa World via AP)

A tree fell and knocked down power lines and blocked a street in a residential neighborhood during storms on Wednesday, April 2, 2025, in Memphis, Tenn. (AP Photo/Adrian Sainz)

Lightning strikes as storms move through the area Wednesday, April 2, 2025, in Ashland City, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Severe storm damage is shown off 96th Street North between Garnett Road and Mingo Road Wednesday, April 2, 2025, in Owasso, Okla. (Mike Simons/Tulsa World via AP)

Ryland Mosley, 18, who was on the 2nd story of his home when the storm passed, stands outside of it observing the damage, Wednesday, April 2, 2025 in Owasso, Okla. (Mike Simons/Tulsa World via AP)

BALTIMORE (AP) — An appeals court on Monday cleared the way for billionaire Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency to once again access people’s private data at three federal agencies, a win for the Trump administration as the underlying lawsuit plays out.

In a split ruling, the three-judge panel blocked a lower court decision that halted DOGE access at the Education Department, the Treasury Department and the Office of Personnel Management. U.S. District Judge Deborah Boardman issued a preliminary injunction last month in federal court in Baltimore, saying the government failed to adequately explain why DOGE needed the information to perform its job duties.

Led by the American Federation of Teachers, the plaintiffs allege the Trump administration violated federal privacy laws when it gave DOGE access to systems with personal information on tens of millions of Americans without their consent, including people’s income and asset information, Social Security numbers, birth dates, home addresses and marital and citizenship status.

The Trump administration says DOGE is targeting waste across the federal government by addressing alleged fraud and upgrading technology.

The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has also sided with the Trump administration in other cases, including allowing DOGE access to U.S. Agency for International Development and letting executive orders against diversity, equity and inclusion move forward. The court left in place, however, an order temporarily blocking DOGE from the Social Security Administration, which contains vast amounts of personal information.

In Monday’s opinion, Judge G. Steven Agee of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals wrote that Boardman’s decision misread legal precedent in “requiring nothing more than abstract access to personal information to establish a concrete injury.” As a result, Agee wrote, the government demonstrated “a strong showing that it is likely to succeed on the merits of their appeal.”

Agee, a nominee of Republican President George W. Bush, was joined in his opinion by Judge Julius Richardson, who was nominated to the bench in 2018 by Republican President Donald Trump. They agreed to stay the preliminary injunction as the case proceeds.

In his concurring opinion, Richardson wrote that more evidence is needed to establish whether the access is necessary. “But it does not stretch the imagination to think that modernizing an agency’s software and IT systems would require administrator-level access to those systems, including any internal databases,” he wrote.

The third judge disagreed. “Simply put, I think the district court got things right,” Judge Robert King wrote in his dissenting opinion. King, who was nominated by Democratic President Bill Clinton, said he requested a larger panel of all 4th Circuit judges to consider the case, but the request was denied.

The lawsuit accused the Trump administration of handing over sensitive data for reasons beyond its intended use, violating the Privacy Act. Instead of carrying out the functions of the federal student loan program, the lawsuit says, DOGE has been accessing loan data “for purposes of destroying” the Education Department.

One of the nation’s largest teachers unions, the American Federation of Teachers says it represents 1.8 million workers in education, health care and government. Also joining the suit were six people with sensitive information stored in federal systems, including military veterans who received federal student loans and other federal benefit payments. The suit also was backed by the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association, and the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers.

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Associated Press writer Lindsay Whitehurst in Washington contributed reporting.

FILE - Elon Musk attends the finals for the NCAA wrestling championship, Saturday, March 22, 2025, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, file)