Severe storms: 2 dead, 1.1 million lose power, thousands of flights canceled

At least two people were killed, more than 1.1 million people lost power at one point and thousands of flights were canceled or delayed on Monday as severe storms moved through the eastern U.S.

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A 15-year-old boy in Anderson, South Carolina died when a tree fell across two vehicles and a detached garage, WSPA-TV reported.

The boy was a sophomore student at T.L. Hanna High School in Anderson, according to the Anderson County Coroner’s Office.

In Alabama, a 28-year-old industrial park worker in Florence died after being struck by lightning in the parking lot of the facility, WAAY-TV reported. The incident occurred at the Florence Industrial Park, according to the Florence Police Department.

The concentration of storms from New York to Mississippi brought torrential rain, thunder and winds up to 70 mph in some areas of the Eastern Seaboard, according to CNN. By late Monday there had been more than 400 reports of strong winds, the cable news network reported.

According to the National Weather Service, tornado watches and warnings were posted across 10 states from New York to Tennessee, The Associated Press reported. The NWS said more than 29.5 million people were under a tornado watch on Monday afternoon, according to the news organization.

At least one tornado was confirmed, The New York Times reported. A twister hit the village of McGraw, located 30 miles south of Syracuse, shortly after 5:30 p.m. EDT, according to the newspaper.

In Pennsylvania, a tornado watch was issued for the Delaware Valley region until 11 p.m. EDT, WPVI-TV reported.

The Washington, D.C., area, including parts of Maryland and Virginia, was under a tornado watch until 9 p.m. EDT, according to WTTG-TV. Officials said it was the first time the area had experienced a “red zone” risk of severe weather since April 19, 2019, the television station reported.

FlightAware, the flight tracking service, said that more than 2,600 U.S. flights had been canceled and nearly 7,900 delayed, The Associated Press reported. Many cancellations were at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, which already experienced major delays on Sunday.

Some passengers at Philadelphia International Airport waited up to four hours on the runway before flights were canceled for the night, one person, who asked not to be identified, told Cox Media Group.

In the metropolitan Atlanta area, severe thunderstorms toppled trees and knocked down power lines on Monday night, WSB-TV reported. Some wind gusts blew at nearly 80 mph, according to the television station.

In Knoxville, roofs were torn from homes and debris was scattered in the eastern Tennessee city, WVLT-TV reported. In nearby Loudon County, Loudon High School was severely damaged by storms and will be closed on Tuesday, according to the television station.

According to PowerOutage.US, more than 650,000 people were without power from Pennsylvania to Georgia at 11 p.m. EDT on Monday. North Carolina reported 232,775 people without power, while 156,138 customers in Pennsylvania were dark. Georgia had 109,049 people without power, Maryland had 95,873 without electricity, while 64,030 customers in Maryland did not have power.

The storms postponed an MLB between the Phillies and the Washington Nationals in Philadelphia, according to ESPN. In Maryland, the National Weather Service issued a flash flood warning into Tuesday after 4 inches of rain fell in a short period of time, the AP reported.

In Cambridge, Maryland, several inches of rain caused flash flooding that stranded several people in their cars, the Times reported. All were rescued, Rob Kramer, Jr., a Dorchester County councilman, told the newspaper.