Damage captured by aerial cameras showed buildings were ripped apart and streets littered with debris after a tornado touched down in Seminole, Oklahoma, about 50 miles southeast of Oklahoma City.
State troopers were among the many agencies assisting in the response there.
Rescuers and local residents had to go into hiding again as more storms appeared after the initial tornado.
Videos and photos shared on social media and broadcast by local TV stations showed threatening clouds, broken windows and other damage in Seminole.
Extensive circulation passed through the region along the warm front and caused numerous tornadoes.
According to KWTV, Seminole public schools have announced they will be closed on Thursday.
The Seminole Academy, a public charter school, was directly hit by the tornado, according to a Facebook post from the school.
According to PowerOutage.us, approximately 14,000 power cuts were reported in Oklahoma at approximately 9:45 PM CT. Most were in Seminole County and adjacent County Hughes.
The city of Seminole has approximately 7,200 inhabitants, while the entire county is inhabited by approximately 23,500 people.
Thunderstorms on Wednesday night came in Oklahoma and Texas in severe weather conditions.
A hailstorm greater than 2 inches was reported Wednesday afternoon in southwest Oklahoma. Hail also fell in parts of West Texas and Kansas.
The tornado was reported shortly before 6 p.m. CT in Dickens County, Texas, approximately 50 miles east of Lubbock. This tornado traveled east to south of Paducah, Texas.
Previously in Kansas, at least three people were injured in separate lightning strikes in the Wichita area, local media reported. One was an airman on an airline at McConnell Air Force Base, who was conscious but was rushed to a local hospital, according to a press release.
Severe weather is expected to continue over the weekend for parts of the Plains, Midwest, and South.
ZZ/PR
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