1 dead as South hit by severe storms again; tornadoes reported in Mississippi and Alabama

• A tornado watch was in effect for portions of Alabama and the panhandle of Florida, along with most of southern Georgia.
• Over 55,000 homes and businesses were without power from eastern Texas to southern Mississippi.
• It’s been a deadly start to the severe weather season in the South.

Another round of deadly severe storms battered the South on Tuesday, with hail the size of a golf ball and howling winds wreaking havoc, as the National Weather Service issued several tornado warnings at the beginning of what was forecast to be two days of violent weather across the region.

In eastern Texas, W. M. Soloman, 71, died when storm winds toppled a tree onto his home in Whitehouse, about 100 miles southeast of Dallas, Whitehouse Mayor James Wansley said.

In central Alabama, emergency officials were assessing the impact Tuesday of several damaging storms that included at least one confirmed tornado.

Radar and the National Weather Service indicated a tornado on the ground south of Wetumpka, Alabama, at about 11 a.m. Trees and power lines were down throughout the county, but no injuries had been reported.

There were also several reports of tornadoes in Mississippi on Tuesday, the Storm Prediction Center said.

Forecasters warned of a destructive day of weather across the region: “Severe thunderstorms are expected today across the Deep South, especially from southeast Mississippi and southern Alabama to the Carolinas,” the Storm Prediction Center said Tuesday. “A swath of damaging wind gusts and several tornadoes are possible across the region, including the risk of a strong tornado.”

The area most at risk includes more than 8 million people across the Alabama cities of Mobile and Montgomery; Tallahassee, Florida; and Columbus and Savannah in Georgia.

A tornado watch was in effect for portions of Alabama and the panhandle of Florida, along with most of southern Georgia and South Caro, the Weather Service said.

More than 43,000 homes and businesses were without power from eastern Texas to Georgia, according to the utility tracker poweroutage.us.

Heavy to excessive rainfall also was possible, the Weather Service said. Downpours may linger for a time in the wake of the line of storms on Tuesday, which can increase the risk of urban and small stream flooding, according to AccuWeather. 

The threat of damaging weather will move to the north Wednesday, forecasters said, with severe storms possible across an area stretching from western Alabama to the western tip of the Carolinas.