Heat wave triggers big storms, power outages in US Southeast, raises wildfire concerns in Southwest

Triple-digit temperatures prompted more heat advisories across much of the southern U.S. on Sunday, triggered severe thunderstorms that knocked out power to hundreds of thousands of people from Oklahoma to Mississippi and produced gusty winds that raised wildfire threats in Arizona and New Mexico. 

A suspected tornado struck near Scranton, Arkansas early Sunday, destroying chicken houses and toppling trees onto houses, the National Weather Service said. There were no immediate reports of serious injuries. 

Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards declared a state of emergency for north and central Louisiana after strong winds and severe weather caused widespread power outages on Saturday. On Sunday, indicated more than 740,000 people were without power in Oklahoma, Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, and Mississippi, according to PowerOutage.us. 

The National Weather Service warned that potentially record-breaking temperatures would continue over southern Texas and the western and central Gulf Coast and that storms producing damaging winds, hail and possibly tornadoes could strike the lower Mississippi Valley.