Severe weather pummels state; 11 dead in Missouri, Oklahoma

Stuttgart, Harrison, Bald Knob hit

By The Associated Press

Photo by Bryan Thornhill

A car plows through floodwater on Rebsamen Road and Tree Tops Lane Saturday night in Little Rock.

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A funnel cloud reportedly touched down in Bald Knob, Harrison and in Stuttgart, where officials said at least three were injured as storms dumped more rain and hail Saturday in several Arkansas counties.

At least 11 people died after severe weather hit Missouri and Oklahoma.

Storms again sweep state

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A Stuttgart Regional Medical Center spokesman said the three people injured were in stable condition.

The National Weather Service said trees and power lines were down across a wide area of Stuttgart and that a home and a business had collapsed. National Weather Service meteorologist John Robinson said there were early reports of a few people trapped in buildings in Stuttgart. He said a number of cars were flipped over by the wind.

John Robinson, warning coordinator meteorologist at the National Weather Service, said several people reportedly were trapped in a dollar store in Stuttgart that later collapsed. He knew of no injuries in the collapse.

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Tommy Jackson of the Arkansas Department of Emergency Management said four people are missing from a trailer park in Stuttgart, but no deaths have been reported.

Jackson said utilities had been shut off in the town and law enforcement officers are doing a house-to-house search.

A mobile command center has been established at Stuttgart's Park Avenue Baptist Church.

In northwest Arkansas, Bentonville's Central Park Elementary School sustained roof and window damage, and damage was also reported to Pine Creek Center School. Jackson said 12-20 homes in Bentonville had minor damage.

An Entergy spokesman said 3,800 Arkansas customers are without power, about half those are in central Arkansas.

Minor damage was reported in Van Buren, White, Cross, Nevada, Little River and Oauchita counties.

Hail fell in numerous areas of the state, ranging from nickel to golf-ball size, according to the weather service.

Tornado warnings were issued over a span of hours, with radar-indicated funnel clouds showing up simultaneously from the western side of the state to the east.

Robinson said some of the winds were not as intense as in previous tornado outbreaks this year.

"Based on reports, most of them have been weak tornadoes. But I don't think the one in Stuttgart is going to be a weak one. With a house collapsed and a store collapsed, that's not a weak tornado that's going to do that," Robinson said.

Spotters reported brief tornado touchdowns in Lonoke and White counties.

At least six people died in Picher, Okla., and four people died in southwestern Missouri, authorities said.

A funnel cloud was reported on Wamsley Road in Bald Knob around 7:35 p.m., and another tornado was reported around 8 p.m. in Stuttgart.

Six supercells were said to have moved through Arkansas on Saturday night.

In Mississippi County, officials said a tractor-trailer tumped over but reported no injuries.

The latest bout of bad weather comes on the heels of yet another fatal storm earlier this month. That weather system spawned at least nine tornadoes and left seven people dead.

A tornado watch until 2 a.m. has been issued for Arkansas, Boone, Chicot, Cleveland, Dallas, Faulkner, Grant, Howard, Jackson, Lafayette, Logan, Miller, Nevada, Perry, Pope, Saline, Sevier, Union, Woodruff, Ashley, Bradley, Clark, Columbia, Desha, Fulton, Hempstead, Independence, Jefferson, Lincoln, Lonoke, Monroe, Newton, Pike, Prairie, Scott, Sharp, Van Buren, Yell, Baxter, Calhoun, Cleburne, Conway, Drew, Garland, Hot Spring, Izard, Johnson, Little River, Marion, Montgomery, Ouachita, Polk, Pulaski, Searcy, Stone and White counties.

Hail of between 3/4-inch to 1 inch fell in Izard, Johnson, Newton, Scott, Sharp and Searcy counties Saturday afternoon.

Stay with Arkansas Online for more on this breaking news event.

The Associated Press contributed to this story