Dangerous weather causes arctic plunge as rivers rise in 9 states
Tallahassee, Florida — From the Deep South to the Midwest, rivers in nine states are above flood stage, threatening homes and businesses. It comes as an arctic blast sweeps across much of the country. Tens of millions of Americans could wake up Friday to below zero temperatures.
Heavy rain caused a mud and rock slide, resulting in a train wreck in Pike County, Kentucky, Thursday morning. A train carrying ethanol derailed, burned for hours and injured two people. CBS affiliate WKYT-TV reports the area was also evacuated as a precaution. That same storm system triggered a mudslide that shut down a West Virginia highway.
Absolutely insane video of two CSX workers climbing from the burning wreckage after a train derailment in Pike County. They were literally trapped between flames and floodwaters. pic.twitter.com/3hYVAFj0h4
— Chris Bailey (@Kentuckyweather) February 13, 2020
High winds left a trail of destruction in Alabama, with twisted metal wrapped around trees. Farther north, temperatures plunged across the Midwest.
In Whiting, Indiana, the wind sent waves over the shoreline of Lake Michigan. It will feel like negative 11 degrees Friday. Water mains froze in Des Moines. Over the next 48 hours, 38 million Americans will be at or below zero degrees. The temperatures are not so much of a concern along the Florida Panhandle, but the swollen rivers are.