A flurry of high-intensity tornadoes inflicted heavy damage on homes and offices in Missouri, Tennessee and Kansas on May 4. Parts of Arkansas, Mississippi, Kentucky, South Dakota, Nebraska, and Michigan also reported touchdowns. The Oklahoma City area was hit during rush hour on May 8, with many injuries but no deaths reported at press time.
As many as 42 people were feared dead across the Midwest and South, with damage estimates in the hundreds of millions of dollars. Businesses were still unreachable in the town of Stockton, Mo., where a twister inflicted massive damage across the entire community of 2,000 residents. According to wire reports, storefronts were in ruin, two banks were destroyed and much of the community was under rubble. Similar damage was sustained across several counties.