On March 14, 2025, a tornado struck Florissant, Missouri, leaving residents to survey the widespread damage. The scene was reported by Lawrence Bryant of Reuters. This destructive weather event was just part of a massive storm that wreaked havoc across several states in the United States, resulting in the tragic loss of at least 26 lives as more severe storms loomed on the horizon for that Saturday evening.
The death toll climbed notably when the Kansas Highway Patrol confirmed that a dust storm in Sherman County on Friday led to a chain-reaction crash involving at least 50 vehicles, causing eight fatalities. Missouri, unfortunately, bore the brunt of the storm’s fury, recording more deaths than any other state. The twisters that swept through overnight claimed at least 12 lives, including one man whose home was obliterated by the tornado.
Butler County Coroner Jim Akers described the heart-wrenching aftermath. “It was unrecognizable as a home. Just a debris field,” he recounted. “The floor was upside down. We were walking on walls.”
In the heavily hit Wayne County, Missouri, Dakota Henderson assisted with rescue efforts. He and others discovered five bodies amidst the rubble of his aunt’s home. “It was a very rough deal last night,” he reflected, standing amidst the devastation of uprooted trees and shattered houses. “What happened to the people, the casualties last night, it’s really disturbing.”
Fortunately, Henderson’s aunt was found alive in the only room left standing in her house, and she was rescued through a window. A man with severe injuries was also helped to safety.
Over in Arkansas, officials reported three deaths in Independence County, with injuries to 29 more residents across eight counties due to the storm’s path of destruction. Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders shared updates on social media about teams surveying the devastation and first responders on the ground offering assistance. Alongside her, Georgia Governor Brian Kemp declared states of emergency, preparing for the severe weather anticipated later in the weekend.
In Texas, three lives were tragically lost in car accidents caused by a dust storm in Amarillo, part of the relentless weather pattern stretching across the region.
Amidst the chaos, over 100 million Americans were affected by the sweeping fronts that included violent dust storms and fueled more than a hundred wildfires. Wind speeds up to 80 mph (130 kph) threatened extreme weather fluctuations throughout areas from the Canadian border down to Texas.
The National Weather Service issued blizzard warnings for large parts of Western Minnesota and Eastern South Dakota, with expectations of 3 to 6 inches (7.6 to 15.2 centimeters) of snow, and up to a foot (30 centimeters) in some places. Forecasters warned of whiteout conditions driven by winds gusting up to 60 mph (97 kph).
In Oklahoma, as more than 130 wildfires blazed through, evacuations were ordered. Some 300 homes suffered damage or complete destruction. Speaking at a news conference, Governor Kevin Stitt revealed that approximately 266 square miles (689 square kilometers) of land in his state had burned. The winds were so ferocious that several tractor-trailers were toppled over.
Experts noted that encountering such extreme weather isn’t unusual for March, as the varied conditions of the season set the stage for volatility.
During this outbreak of violent storms, the Storm Prediction Center warned that Saturday’s entry of high-speed systems could bring additional tornadoes and hail the size of baseballs. The most concerning threat, however, came from winds nearing or exceeding hurricane strength, potentially gusting as high as 100 mph (160 kph).
Saturday observed continuing tornado activity, with vulnerable regions stretching from eastern Louisiana and Mississippi through Alabama, western Georgia, and the Florida panhandle remaining under threat. In Tylertown, Mississippi, 24-year-old Bailey Dillon and her fiancé, Caleb Barnes, watched in disbelief from their porch as a gargantuan tornado ripped through an area near Paradise Ranch RV Park just half a mile away. Documenting their experience, they captured scenes of flattened buildings, snapped trees, and overturned vehicles.
“The amount of damage was catastrophic,” Dillon remarked. “Cabins, RVs, campers – everything was destroyed.” Although Paradise Ranch later confirmed on Facebook that all staff and guests were unharmed, Dillon noted that the devastation extended far beyond the ranch. “Homes and everything were destroyed all around it,” she said. “Schools and buildings are just completely gone.”
Images and videos capturing the extent of this extreme weather event have since spread widely across social media, with residents like Tad Peters and his father capturing firsthand experiences. They were on their way to Indiana for a weightlifting competition when they were caught up in the chaos. The traffic stopped as tornado sirens blared, and people hurriedly parked along the interstate to seek shelter. The pair chose to reroute back home to Norman, Oklahoma, only to encounter wildfires en route.
Elsewhere across the Southern Plains, warm, dry conditions coupled with strong winds posed significant wildfire threats, affecting Texas, Kansas, Missouri, and New Mexico. Roberts County in Texas saw a wildfire swell from under a square mile to about 32.8 square miles (85 square kilometers) before firefighters managed to contain it. Another fire, around 60 miles (90 kilometers) south, expanded to roughly 3.9 square miles (10 square kilometers) before its spread was curtailed.
High winds left more than 200,000 homes and businesses without power across states including Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, and Michigan, according to the website poweroutage.us.
