The National Weather Service issued tornado warnings for counties across five states on Wednesday afternoon as a system of storms barreled through the Southeastern United States.
The storms, being chased by a cold front, were expected to leave nearly 60 million people at risk of tornadoes, damaging winds, thunderstorms and flooding, according to a CNN forecast.
The severe weather also moved into the Ohio and Tennessee valleys, according to the National Weather Service.
The weather service issued tornado warnings — which indicate tornadoes are imminent — for towns in Alabama, Georgia, Illinois, Tennessee and South Carolina. It tallied numerous reports of hail and high winds and listed eight possible tornadoes — seven in Georgia and one in South Carolina.
The agency had tornado watches, which means that conditions are favorable for severe weather, for a broad area stretching from the Florida Panhandle up into Indiana.
A tornado emergency was issued for Webster and Sumter Counties in Georgia earlier Wednesday. In Sumter County, a suspected tornado up to a mile and a half wide was spotted, county emergency management director Nigel Poole told CNN.
“We are still taking cover and actively watching the storm,” Poole said. “There have been reports of damage, but we have not been able to access them yet.”
Hail fell in many parts of Alabama, where Gov. Robert Bentley declared a state of emergency ahead of the weather event.
Jake Reed, a meteorologist for CNN affiliate WHNT in Huntsville, Alabama, issued a stark warning on Facebook, saying it was “far and away the biggest threat Alabama has seen in quite some time.”
Metro Atlanta was hit by a deluge of rain. Flash-flood warnings were issued for several counties surrounding Atlanta and Athens to the east. A flash-flood watch was issued for area across northern Georgia.
At the Masters golf tournament in Augusta, Georgia, the Par 3 Contest was canceled due to the inclement weather.
In addition, the Federal Aviation Administration issued a ground stop for flights at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. The ground stop was lifted in the afternoon, but delays are expected as storms hit the area. Almost 500 flights to or from the airport were canceled, according to the flight tracking website FlightAware.