Severe weather and flash flooding expected in the Plains and Midwest

There were more than 100 reports of severe weather, spanning from the Plains to the South to the mid-Atlantic, on Saturday, including four tornadoes -- two in Kentucky, one in South Dakota and one in Montana.

Winds gusted up to 87 mph in Texas, which also saw baseball-sized hail, and winds exceeded 70 mph in Oklahoma, which today could see more severe weather.

Thunderstorms knocked down trees into homes in northern Georgia and southern Tennessee, and in Memphis several thousand people reportedly lost power during a strong thunderstorm.

The threat of a severe storm today in Oklahoma will begin to diminish later in the morning.

A new system is expected to develop in the central U.S. today, bringing with it the next round of severe weather and potential flash flooding. By the late afternoon and into early Monday, much of the Plains, upper Midwest and Mississippi River Valley may see scattered strong to severe storms.

Today there's an enhanced risk of severe weather in parks of Oklahoma, Texas and Kansas, with potential for destructive winds, large hail and tornadoes. A slight risk also exists for parts of Oklahoma, Iowa, Arkansas and Kentucky.

The weather system on Monday will slide farther eastward, bringing another round of strong to severe storms across parts of the Midwest. There's a slight risk of severe weather across parts of Iowa, Illinois and northern Missouri. The main threat again will be damaging winds and sizable hail.

These summer thunderstorms are expected to bring torrential rain, with 3-4 inches possible across parts of the Plains and Tennessee Valley.

As of 6:30 a.m. today, the Pawnee Fire in California had spread to 1,500 acres and was 0 percent contained, with at least a dozen structures damaged or destroyed and 700 others evacuated.

The fire is in Lake County, where highs today could reach 108 degrees.

The heat is subsiding a bit elsewhere in cities including Palm Springs and Las Vegas, but it's still quite hot -- and very dry. Therefore the threat for fires remains high across parts of the West.