Life-threatening Flooding, Tornadoes Threaten Multiple States

Red Cross helping as threat of flooding and tornadoes lasts through the weekend

Life-threatening flooding and devastating tornadoes are threatening to impact millions of people in the Midwest and South as yet another round of severe weather hovers over the region for the next few days.

There have already been almost 30 tornadoes reported, damaging homes and roads and knocking out power. Rivers are already on the rise and the severe weather is expected to bring as much as 15 inches of rain and additional multiple strong tornadoes to the region. The American Red Cross is on the ground across the affected states, working with state and local officials to help people impacted by these storms. Shelters are open and more disaster workers are standing by should there be a need to expand the response.

GET READY NOW Take these simple steps and be ready:

• You and members of your household should have a plan to evacuate and a plan to shelter safely at home. Your evacuation plan should include knowing where you’ll go, how you’ll get there, and where you’ll stay. Your stay-at-home plan should focus on gathering the right supplies so that you can live safely without power, water, gas, phone or internet for a long time.
• Families may need to evacuate quickly with little notice. Create a plan that includes how you’ll stay connected with each other, where you’ll go, how you’ll get there, and where you’ll stay.
• Sign up for free emergency alerts from your local government, which will include important information such as evacuation orders in an emergency.
• Download the free Emergency app for weather alerts, open Red Cross shelter locations and safety steps for different emergencies. Choose whether you want to view the content in English or Spanish with an easy-to-find language selector. To download, search “American Red Cross” in app stores, or go to redcross.org/apps.

SAFETY STEPS

During a flood, be prepared to evacuate immediately if local officials advise.

• Don’t return home until officials say it’s safe.
• Don’t walk, swim or drive through floodwater. Turn around, don’t drown!
• Stay off the roads. If you must drive and you encounter a flooded roadway, turn around and go another way. Just 6 inches of fast-moving floodwater can knock you over, and 12 inches can carry your car away.
• Follow evacuation routes and don’t try to take shortcuts because they may be blocked.
• If you are caught on a flooded road and waters are rising around you, quickly get out of the car, move to higher ground and stay there.

If a tornado warning is issued or if you suspect a tornado, go to your safe place immediately.

• A WATCH means be prepared as tornadoes are possible and you should be ready to act fast. A WARNING means take action now as a tornado is near and you need to move to a safe location right away
• After getting to your safe shelter, use your arms to protect your head and neck. Keep listening to radio, TV or other news sources. Stay in your shelter until the tornado warning ends.
• If the building you are in has been damaged, exit with extreme care and stay out. Look around for things that might fall or are dangerous.
• Do not use matches or lighters inside. If you smell gas or see spills that could be flammable, leave immediately.
• If you are trapped, try to cover your mouth with a cloth or mask to avoid breathing dust. Try to send a text, bang on a pipe or wall, or use a whistle instead of shouting.

If thunder roars, go indoors. Postpone outdoor activities if the forecast calls for thunderstorms. Watch for storm signs, such as darkening skies, lightning flashes and increasing wind action.

• Seek shelter inside a sturdy building and move to the basement or an interior room on the lowest floor. Stay away from glass windows and doors.
• Lightning can be dangerous even when you are inside. Avoid using devices connected to electrical outlets. Avoid running water as lightning can travel through plumbing and water lines.
• No place outside is safe when thunderstorms are nearby. Sheds, gazebos, dugouts and bleachers don’t protect from lightning or high winds. Avoid taking shelter under a tree as they are often hit by lightning, and you could be injured.
• Being in a vehicle is safer than being outside; however, if you have time, drive to the closest sturdy building, and take shelter inside. If you are driving and can’t get to a sturdy building, pull off the road and park in a place where falling trees and power lines won’t hit you.
• Turn around, don’t drown. Flash flooding happens quickly. Move to higher ground before floodwaters reach you. Never walk, swim or drive through floodwater.

CLIMATE CRISIS The Red Cross is operating in a state of continuous response with a major disaster occurring as often as every 15 days. For example, there were more than 100 tornadoes reported between March 13-15, a significantly higher number than the historical average of 80 tornadoes in March. And to respond to these non-stop disasters, the Red Cross has deployed 87% more disaster workers to support those affected compared to the same period in 2024. As disasters become more frequent and intense, the Red Cross is increasing our capacity to help those in need.

Annual Disaster Giving Program (ADGP) Through the generosity of our American Red Cross Annual Disaster Giving Program (ADGP) and Disaster Responder members, the American Red Cross is prepared before disaster strikes. ADGP and Disaster Responder members help secure a reliable funding base for disaster relief services that enables the Red Cross to respond immediately, meeting the needs of individuals and families affected by disaster.

Mission Leader Members: Amazon; American Airlines; The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints; Costco Wholesale; State Farm

ADGP $1M Members: American Honda Motor Company; Anheuser-Busch Foundation; Bank of America; Caterpillar Foundation; Chobani; CMA CGM Foundation; Delta Air Lines; Elevance Health Foundation; Enterprise Mobility Foundation; FedEx; Lilly Endowment Inc.; Lowe's Companies, Inc.; McDonald’s Corporation; Merck; Microsoft; Nationwide Foundation; The Pfizer Foundation; Six Four Foundation; The Starbucks Foundation; Takeda; Truist Foundation; VSP Vision; Walmart and the Walmart Foundation; Wells Fargo

ADGP $500k Members: ALDI; Altria Group; American Express; Aon; Baxter International Foundation; Boeing; Bread Financial; Capital One; Chick-fil-A; Citi Foundation; The Clorox Company; Danaher Foundation; Darden Foundation; Delta Dental; DHL Supply Chain; Edison International; Energy Transfer/Sunoco Foundation; Ford Philanthropy; Fox Corporation; GE Aerospace; General Motors; Google.org; Harbor Freight Tools Foundation, LLC; HCA Healthcare; The Home Depot Foundation; The J.M. Smucker Company; Johnson Controls Foundation; ; The Kraft Heinz Company Foundation; The Kroger Co. Foundation; Liberty Mutual Insurance; Lockheed Martin Corporation; Marathon Petroleum Corporation; Mastercard; Mondelēz International Foundation; New Balance Foundation; NTT Data; Paul Davis Restoration; PayPal; PepsiCo Foundation; PetSmart Charities; Southeastern Grocers Gives Foundation & Southeastern Grocers, Harveys Supermarket and Winn-Dixie; Stryker; Suburban Propane; Target; The TJX Companies, Inc.; Toyota; United Airlines; UPS; USAA; U.S. Bank Foundation; Visa Foundation; The Walt Disney Company; The Wawa Foundation; Wesco; Yum! Brands; Zoetis Foundation

Disaster Responder Members: 7-Eleven Cares Foundation; Adobe Foundation; The AES Corporation; Aflac; Albemarle Corporation; The Allstate Foundation; American Family Insurance; American Tire Distributors; American Water Charitable Foundation; Ameriprise Financial; Assurant; AvalonBay Communities, Inc.; Avangrid Foundation; Barclays; Bath & Body Works;; Build-A-Bear Foundation; Canadian National Railway; CarMax; CDW; Charles Schwab Foundation; Cisco and Cisco Foundation; CNA Insurance; The Coca-Cola Foundation; The Deluxe Foundation; DENSO North America Foundation; The DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation; Discover; Dollar General; Dollar Tree; Duke Energy; Erie Insurance; Equitable; Fifth Third Foundation; FirstEnergy Corporation; HP Foundation; International Paper; Invitation Homes; Johnson & Johnson Foundation; Keurig Dr Pepper; Kimberly-Clark Corporation; L’Oréal; The Labcorp Charitable Foundation; Lenovo ; LKQ; Macy’s, Inc.; Major League Baseball; Martin Marietta; Masco Corporation; McKesson Foundation; MetLife Foundation; Mutual of Omaha; Neiman Marcus Group; NextEra Energy, Inc.; Norfolk Southern; Northrop Grumman Foundation; Northwestern Mutual; Novartis; Old Dominion Freight Line; Oxy; Pacific Life Foundation; Prudential; Raymond James; RBC Foundation USA; Reckitt; Reliance, Inc.; Reynolds American Inc.; RTX; Ryder System, Inc.; Salesforce; Santander Bank and Santander Consumer USA Foundation Inc. ; Security Finance’s Lending Hand Foundation; ServiceNow; Southwest Airlines; Stanley Black & Decker; Stephens; Tata Consultancy Services; Tennant Company; U-Haul International; Ulta Beauty Charitable Foundation; US Foods; Zurich