New tornado threat in the South this weekend

Around 70 million people could be hit by fierce storms this weekend after six people were killed by severe weather across the South on Thursday

A new storm is expected to hit the South this weekend. The tornado threat spans an area from Arkansas to northern Mississippi and includes cities like Memphis and Nashville.

Tornadoes could land in the South on Saturday as the harsh weather moves on Sunday to include the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic when cities such as Atlanta, Raleigh, and Washington, DC could see strong, potentially harmful winds, large hail, and possibly a tornado, according to ABC News.

This all amounts to about 70 million people possibly being hit by fierce storms this weekend after six people were killed by severe weather across the South on Thursday.

Coweta County, Georgia saw one death and “catastrophic” damage, according to the county's Fire Chief Pat Wilson.

Another five people died in Calhoun County, Alabama. The state was hit by 17 tornadoes.

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The Calhoun County Medical Examiner's Office said three of the victims were from the same family. One survivor, a 13-year-old girl, lost her mother and grandparents, according to Calhoun County Sheriff Matthew Wade.

CNN Meteorologist Chad Myers said: “Conditions, like we will have on Saturday and Sunday, can fool people. You look at the forecast and say, 'Well that's not as bad as Thursday,' and that is true.”

He added: "These high-risk days we've seen this year inadvertently alter your expectations. Will we have the same risk as yesterday? No. Will we still have some tornadoes, hail and wind? Yes."

The tornado risk will be lower than on Thursday, but the possibility that homes may be destroyed remains.

Showers and thunderstorms will begin Saturday morning, with the Storm Prediction Center putting the threat level at a three out of five, which is labelled as an “enhanced risk”. This means Arkansas, Tennessee, and Mississippi may see severe storms.

A lower risk exists for central Illinois, northern Texas, and northern Georgia all the way into Saturday night, affecting around 30 million people.

The SPC said: "All hazards are possible including large hail, damaging wind and tornadoes."

The National Weather Service in Nashville added flooding to the list of possible threats.

Overnight severe weather is the most dangerous as spotting a coming tornado becomes close to impossible in the dark.

The SPC said that on Sunday “damaging wind will be the main threats, but a few tornadoes and some hail will also be possible before the front moves offshore during the evening”.

A level 2 out of five – a “slight risk” – currently is in place for Delaware to northern Georgia, including cities like Washington, DC, Baltimore, Richmond, Charlotte, and Atlanta.

Severe storms in this area will likely come Sunday afternoon and stretch into the night. Temperatures will be warm, in the 70s and 80s, helping the thunderstorms along, CNN reported.

A new group of storms will form near the Gulf Coast early next week and move towards the Northeast, but it's not clear whether this will produce further severe storm or just additional rain.