Plains, Midwest brace for severe weather as storms, tornadoes possible

More than 40 million people from Texas to Michigan face an elevated threat of severe weather on the afternoon of May 18 and into the overnight hours with severe storms, hail and tornadoes possible.

Severe thunderstorms, intense rainfall and flooding are expected over parts of the south-central Plains and mid-Missouri Valley in the afternoon and evening, according to the National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center.

The threat will continue on May 19, when a preliminary forecast indicates more than 60 million people could be at risk of severe weather, from Texas through parts of New England.

The storms follow a day of active weather on May 17, which sent weather service crews out to conduct surveys for possible tornadoes on Monday. Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa and Minnesota all saw varying degrees of hail, destructive winds and tornadoes , with a level 3 out of 5 threat for severe thunderstorms stretching across much of the central U.S. The weather service received more than a dozen tornado reports, according to preliminary information available from the weather service, as well as 123 reports of hail and 180 reports of high winds.

Which states are most at risk for severe weather on Monday?

The Storm Prediction Center said tornadoes, some of them intense, in addition to damaging winds and widespread baseball-size hail are possible on May 18 in portions of Iowa, central and eastern Kansas, northwest Missouri, southeast Nebraska and northern Oklahoma.

"Supercells capable of producing very large to giant hail and multiple strong to intense tornadoes are most likely from central Kansas and southeast Nebraska into Iowa and northwest Missouri," the center said.

An area roughly between Wichita, Kansas and the border between Southeast Nebraska and northwestern Missouri is at the greatest risk, with a threat level 4 out of 5 for severe weather. That threat level, called "moderate," is unusual and is only designated by the Storm Prediction Center around 14 times a year, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. It indicates the likely potential for "widespread severe weather with several tornadoes and/or numerous severe thunderstorms, some of which may be intense."

Other locations, stretching roughly from Enid, Oklahoma to Fort Dodge, Kansas, face a 3 out of 5 threat.

"Major metros at risk of dangerous severe thunderstorms include Oklahoma City; Kansas City, Missouri; Omaha, Nebraska; Des Moines, Iowa, and Minneapolis," AccuWeather reported.

What to do if a tornado is imminent

According to the SPC, residents of these areas should stay weather-aware and be on the look out for watches and warnings.

A tornado watch means that conditions are favorable for tornadoes to form during the next several hours. If a tornado warning is issued for your area, move to a place of safety, ideally in a basement or interior room on the lowest floor of a study building, according to the SPC.

This story has been updated to add new information.

Gabe Hauari is a national trending news reporter at USA TODAY. You can follow him on X @GabeHauari or email him at [email protected].