At least 1 dead, multiple people injured as severe weather hits Kentucky: Sheriff

At least one person is dead and multiple others were injured as severe weather swept through Kentucky on Friday, authorities said.

A tornado struck just outside of Athens, Tennessee, -- between Chattanooga & Knoxville -- Friday afternoon, injuring 5 people in Loudon County.

Earlier Friday morning, a stronger tornado swept through Washington County in central Kentucky, which was rated an EF2 by the local National Weather Service office. This tornado was responsible for the death of one person and injured at least 14 people.

The Washington County Sheriff's Office reported one fatality and multiple injuries, with "severe damage" after a tornado hit parts of the county.

"This is located in the remote part of the county, so it was a small area hit, but it was devastating," Washington County Judge/Executive Tim Graves said during a news briefing on Friday.

The National Weather Service has given the tornado a preliminary rating of EF-2 with winds up to 115 mph. The storm damage survey continues, and the tornado may have continued into parts of Mercer County and the central part of the state.

The "level of severe weather was unexpected," Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said on social media after the tornado struck Washington County.

Three people, including a 3-year-old, were initially reported missing, though they have all since been located, Devine said. The child was transported to a local hospital, while the other two brought themselves to a hospital, he said.

There is no tornado siren for that area of the county, though emergency alerts went out to cellphones, according to Devine.

Beshear warned residents of eastern and southeastern Kentucky to "be alert," with additional storms expected in the region on Friday.

Storms swept across parts of the East on Friday, producing damaging winds that knocked trees and power lines as well as partially damaging some structures in Georgia, Tennessee, South Carolina and Virginia. There were over 110 reports of wind damage from these storms from Florida up to Maryland.

Damaging weather continues

The storm system responsible for this and bringing severe weather to the eastern half of the country this week is weakening in intensity over the East Coast, but it will still bring lingering showers and thunderstorms for parts of the Northeast for Saturday.

The bulk of the heavy rain will move out of New York City later Saturday morning, with the more widespread rain being centered over upstate New York and northern New England for much of the day.

Some lingering isolated showers and thunderstorms will still be present across the rest of the region, from Virginia Beach to New York City and out to Pittsburgh from the late morning until the evening hours.

The heavier rain also begins to thin out across upstate New York and northern New England by this point as the storm system begins to move away.

Drier conditions will begin to settle in for Sunday and the beginning of the new week.

Severe storms will be possible across parts of the Plains this weekend heading into the new week as part of a separate area of unsettled weather.

For Saturday, severe storms are possible from northern Texas up to eastern Kansas and western Missouri, with the highest threat centered over locations like Wichita Falls, Texas; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; and Wichita, Kansas.

The primary risks will be damaging winds and large hail, with a few tornadoes possible. Isolated flash flooding, especially in areas susceptible to flooding, will also be possible with these storms today.

On Sunday, the severe weather threat shifts south and remains confined to portions of east-central Texas, with the highest severe weather threat centered over Waco.

The primary risks will again be damaging winds and large hail, with a few tornadoes possible.

For Monday, the severe weather threat shifts north to the Central High Plains as a new storm system begins to take shape over the heart of the country. The highest severe weather threat for Monday will be centered over central Nebraska and eastern South Dakota.

This new storm system will bring more stormy weather for more of the Plains on Tuesday, eventually sweeping east and bringing more unsettled weather for the middle to end of the new week for the eastern half of the country.