FOX Weather Correspondent Brandy Campbell reports from Hopkinsville, Kentucky where heavy rain will continue to cause deadly flooding. The Hopkinsville Fire Department has been busy rescuing people from flooding and residents say this is the worst they have ever seen flooding in the area.
FRANKFORT, Ky. – A relentless barrage of tornadoes and historic flash flooding across several states has now claimed at least 16 lives, according to state and local officials.
The latest death occurred near the town of Boston, Kentucky, where the Nelson County Sheriff’s Office said a 74-year-old driver was found dead Saturday morning in their vehicle after authorities responded to a call for a water rescue. Authorities have not identified the victim.
“Please do not try to cross flooded roadways,” authorities said in a post on Facebook. “The end result does not out weigh the risk. Turn around don’t drown is more than a saying it’s the difference between life and death.”
FOX Weather’s Mike Seidel and photographer Jarrod Maloney were in the thick of a massive thunderstorm as it swept through the Little Rock, Arkansas area Saturday morning, dodging lightning strikes as the NWS issued a Flash Flood Emergency.
In Frankfort, Kentucky, police said a boy was swept away by floodwaters while on his way to the school bus stop in the Hickory Hills area. He was found dead a few hours later by EMS and first responders. The Franklin County Coroner identified the boy as 9-year-old Gabriel Andrews.
“A tragedy such as this is felt by our entire community, and we all grieve together,” Frankfort Mayor Layne Wilkerson said. “We encourage our community to be diligent and stay safe during this weekend’s continuing severe weather event.”
This comes after a deadly tornado outbreak killed at least sevenpeopleand spawned more than 30 reports of twisters across the lower and mid-Mississippi Valley on Wednesday.
At least 10 of those deaths happened in Tennessee, state officials said. On Thursday, President Donald Trump approved the disaster declaration for all 95 counties in Tennessee, setting in motion FEMA’s response to disaster relief across the state.
And one death was reported in Little Rock in connection to the severe weather threat across Arkansas.
FOX Weather exclusive footage shows the extensive damage caused by a tornado in Arkansas. (Robert Ray)
The Oaks student housing center, foreground, and other nearby structures in Nevada, Missouri, sustained heavy damage when they were hit by a tornado that tore through the town on Wednesday morning, April 2, 2025. (Tammy Ljungblad/The Kansas City Star/Tribune News Service)
Structural damage is visible at Christ Community Church after a tornado struck on April 3, 2025, in Paducah, Kentucky. (Michael Swensen/Getty Images)
Structural damage is visible at Christ Community Church after a tornado struck on April 3, 2025, in Paducah, Kentucky. (Michael Swensen/Getty Images)
Downed trees and heavy structure damage are seen after tornadoes moved through the area on April 03, 2025 in Selmer, Tennessee. Jason Davis/Getty Images) (Michael Swensen/Getty Images)
SELMER, TENNESSEE – APRIL 03: Downed trees and heavy structure damage are seen after tornadoes moved through the area on April 03, 2025 in Selmer, Tennessee. At least 5 people were reportedly killed during the severe storm which caused widespread destruction across the region. (Photo by Jason Davis/Getty Images) (Â )
PADUCAH, KENTUCKY – APRIL 3: Structural damage is visible at Christ Community Church after a tornado struck on April 3, 2025, in Paducah, Kentucky. Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear issued a state of emergency ahead of the storms that are expected to cause flash flooding and tornadoes across Kentucky. Â (Photo by Michael Swensen/Getty Images) (Â )
PADUCAH, KENTUCKY – APRIL 3: Parishioners and community members look over damage after a tornado struck the Christ Community Church on April 3, 2025 in Paducah, Kentucky. Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear issued a state of emergency ahead of the storms that are expected to cause flash flooding and tornadoes across Kentucky. Â (Photo by Michael Swensen/Getty Images) (Â )
Extensive damage seen on drone video at a Louisville, Kentucky business on April 3, 2025. (Live Storms Media )
Extensive damage seen on drone video at a Louisville, Kentucky business on April 3, 2025. (Live Storms Media )
Extensive damage seen on drone video at a Louisville, Kentucky business on April 3, 2025. (Live Storms Media )
Extensive damage seen on drone video at a Louisville, Kentucky business on April 3, 2025. (Live Storms Media )
Extensive damage seen on drone video at a Louisville, Kentucky business on April 3, 2025. (Live Storms Media )
Tornado damage in Monette, Arkansas on April 3, 2025 after a severe weather outbreak. (Â )
Tornado damage in Monette, Arkansas on April 3, 2025 after a severe weather outbreak. (Â )
Storm damage to a warehouse in Brownsburg, Indiana after severe weather on April 3, 2025. ( )
The storms have also injured dozens of others and destroyed several homes from Arkansas, Missouri and Tennessee through Kentucky, Illinois and Indiana.
In Missouri, Whitewater Fire Protection District Chief Garry Moore was killed while responding to severe weather on Wednesday night along Highway 25 between Advance and Delta, Missouri. A statement from Whitewater Fire Protection District said the department responded on Wednesday night “to assist with search and rescue efforts due to widespread damage from a presumed tornado.”
“During the response, Chief Moore observed a vehicle off the roadway and stopped to assess the incident and render aid if needed,” the statement said. “A short time later, Chief Moore was found unconscious at the scene.”
Daniel Parker’s video taken in Doniphan, Missouri, captures a potential funnel cloud and lightning. This observation is located about 10 miles from the Storm Prediction Center’s reported tornado activity in Naylor, Missouri, and aligns with the timing of those reports.
Hendricks County Sheriff’s Office officials in Indiana said a 27-year-old Danville man was killed during the storm when his vehicle ran over downed power lines. At some point, the driver got out of the car and came into contact with the live power lines, deputies said.
And hundreds of roads across the river valleys are impassible.
Assessments are underway, such as in Hot Springs, Arkansas, where floodwaters took out part of Highway 171 – which is one of dozens of impassable roadways.
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The Arkansas Department of Transportation reports several roadways were washed out southwest of Little Rock.
(Arkansas Department of Transportation / FOX Weather)