Residents in a large portion of the U.S. mid-west and South were urged to heed warnings as prime conditions formed on Friday afternoon for severe weather going into the weekend.
By later Friday night the National Weather Center had extended some warnings, including in Iowa, until after 10 p.m. CT.
A tornado watch went into effect until Friday night for all of eastern Nebraska into western Iowa with severe weather hazards possible for Friday afternoon and into the evening, Scripps News Omaha reported. Commuters were warned to be cautious as severe weather could impact their afternoon and evening travel home from work.
Ken Gruber at Omaha Rapid Response shared images on social media showing severe damage to homes and properties as area residents appeared to assess damage later on Friday.
Conditions were ripe for heavy rain, hail formation and concerning wind speeds that could cause damage. Conditions for a severe weather threat could extend until midnight for some areas and could extend into Saturday night.
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Scripps News Tulsa told area residents in Oklahoma to be on guard for possible tornadoes after a warning was issued until 9 p.m. Friday night. Multiple rounds of severe weather were expected into the weekend. Severe thunderstorm warnings were issued for much of the northeastern part of the state. Over 20 counties were put under tornado watches until 9 p.m. on Friday. Parts of the state faced potential higher-end severe weather into Saturday including the possibility of hail, strong winds and tornadoes.
It was possible that severe weather could develop again on Sunday.
From Central Texas to the Texoma region between Texas and Oklahoma, weather watchers were keeping a close eye on possible isolated supercells that could develop, depending on how warm the air temperature gets, according to Scripps News Central Texas.
Residents were urged to have a plan in place for severe weather for the next few days.
The National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center said an enhanced risk for severe weather was placed over areas including Kansas City in Missouri, Omaha and Lincoln, Nebraska, and areas of Iowa with a slight to marginal risk over many areas of Texas and around Shreveport in Louisiana.
Scripps News Kansas City reported a tornadic supercell was crossing over into Tarkio in northwestern Missouri on Friday afternoon.
