The National Weather Service issued a tornado emergency, the most severe type of warning that exists, in Lake City, Arkansas.

Violent storms have cut through a wide swath of the South and Midwest, spawning tornadoes and killing at least one person, knocking down power lines and trees and ripping roofs off homes.

Tornadoes touched down in parts of the South and Midwest on Wednesday, knocking down power lines and trees and ripping roofs off of homes, while golf-ball sized hail fell in a region being hit by a violent swath of severe storms.

A life-threatening outbreak of long-lived and strong tornadoes is expected today in parts of the central and eastern US from a powerful, wide-reaching spring storm.

A powerful, wide-reaching spring storm is threatening parts of the central and eastern US, with a life-threatening outbreak of long-lived and strong tornadoes possible in some areas. Follow here for live updates.

Tornadoes and violent storms struck parts of the South and Midwest on Wednesday, knocking down power lines and trees, ripping roofs off homes and shooting debris thousands of feet into the air as a swath of severe weather hit the region.

Forecasters issued some of their rarest and most extreme alerts on Wednesday as they warned a powerful storm system would stall over the central part of the country.

As severe thunderstorms threaten to hit parts of the Midwest and South, forecasters are warning of potentially deadly flash flooding, strong tornadoes and baseball-sized hail.

GRAND RAPIDS, MI – Consumers Energy officials said this weekend’s ice storm to the north in Michigan and tornadoes to the south made it one of the 10 worst storms in the utility company’s history.