The storms closed some roads in western North Carolina, a region broadly devastated by Hurricane Helene this fall. That included part of U.S. 441, also known as the Great Smoky Mountains Expressway, which closed north of Bryson City due to high winds.

Possible thunderstorms could bring isolated tornadoes into Saturday night in Tennessee, Texas, Louisiana, and Georgia, according to media forecasting company AccuWeather. It said that showers with thunder and lightning may move toward the Southeast and mid-Atlantic by the weekend’s end.

The National Weather Service warned of a "tornado outbreak" across some Southern states on Saturday, with imminent danger in Texas.