Storms Across U.S. Leave at Least 32 Dead, Bring Dozens of Airports to a Near Standstill

Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport
Severe weather including tornados struck the South, Midwest, and East of the United States, leaving at least 32 people dead and entire towns reduced to rubble.  Hundreds of flights were cancelled due to the deadly weather and travel advisories were in effect throughout much of the country.
As of Sunday evening, over 180,000 homes and businesses were without electricity in eight Southern and Eastern states after strong winds and storms toppled trees, downed power lines, and turned random objects left outdoors into dangerous projectiles.
One tornado at the center of mass destruction in Arkansas was an EF3 with winds of up to 165 mph (266 km/h), 30 miles long (48 km) and 1.3 miles (2 km) wide.
The weather caused the cancellation of over 800 flights within, into, and out of the United States as well as an additional 6,635 flight delays.  Most of the delays and cancellations were centered around Dallas/Fort Worth International and Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International airports, and American Airlines and Delta Air Lines were the most affected by the weather, 324 and 145 flights cancelled, respectively, and an additional 630 and 853 delayed.
The two airports had the most flight delays in the world on Sunday as well.
On Saturday, flight delays and cancellations were centered around Minneapolis/St. Paul International, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International, Washington Ronald Reagan National, Newark Liberty International, and Chicago O’Hare International airports.
The picture at these airports was completely different Monday, where, as of noon EDT, there were only a handful of delays or cancellations.
(Photo: Accura Media Group)