Severe weather sweeps across the southern plains, producing at least two tornadoes

A swath of severe weather crossing Oklahoma on Sunday night and Monday spawned at least two tornadoes and triggered a wave of warnings, a weather official said. There were no immediate reports of injuries or deaths.

The first tornado was reported about three miles northwest of Gore, Oklahoma, in Sequoyah County, according to 4029 News, a local Arkansas TV station. A second tornado was reported after midnight about six miles south of Jay, a small town near the Oklahoma-Arkansas border.

A possible tornado was also reported in Coweta, a suburb southeast of Tulsa, Oklahoma, NewsOn6, a local television station reported. The storm damaged homes, a gas station and a high school.

Coweta Public Schools canceled in person and virtual lessons on Monday and said school sites would be inspected for damage from storms.

Joe Sellers, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Tulsa, said Monday the number of tornadoes that hit eastern Oklahoma on Sunday would not be known until after the polls were completed, adding that at least two to three could be confirmed. “But probably there will be more,” Sellers said.

About 5,000 Oklahoma customers were without power as of Monday morning, Oklahoma Gas & Electric reported.

Until Sunday night, rapid storms brought inclement weather including lightning and heavy rain to parts of Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri and Texas where storms had forced the state fair , held in Dallas, to close early.

In Missouri, an NFL game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Buffalo Bills on Sunday night was delayed by nearly an hour due to lightning in the area.

Early Monday, showers and storms continued to batter northeastern Oklahoma, the weather service said. Some storms could produce gusts of wind and cause torrential rains.

“Be aware of any ongoing flooding and turn around, don’t drown if you encounter a flooding roadway,” the agency said.

Mr Sellers said he expected the weather to clear up in eastern Oklahoma on Monday, but more storms were expected Tuesday night.

Up to 2.25 inches of rain was expected in parts of Kansas and southwestern Missouri through Monday morning, with isolated amounts of up to four inches.