At least 42 people are dead after a weekend of dynamic storms unleashed tornadoes, blinding dust and wildfires – leaving behind uprooted trees and flattening hundreds of homes and businesses across eight U.S. states in the South and Midwest.

Weather forecasters gave an unusual "high risk" designation to the storm system, which began Friday before tapering off Sunday. For now, people in the affected communities are surveying damage as some brace for more potentially damaging weather.

Major storm damage is seen in Plantersville, Alabama, U.S., March 17, 2025. /VCG

Missouri lost the most lives in the storm and tornadoes, with 13 reported killed. Mississippi saw six people killed by tornadoes.

Wildfires or high winds were blamed for four deaths in Oklahoma, including a person who died in a car crash due to poor visibility and an individual whose remains were found in a burned home.

Vehicle crashes caused by dust storms killed eight in Kansas and three in Texas. Alabama and Arkansas each reported three.

The storm also killed two boys, ages 11 and 13, when a tree fell on their home in western North Carolina on Sunday, according to firefighters.