In Missouri, a warning of imminent failure for a levee on the Black River in the southeast part of the state prompted the mandatory evacuation of about 1,000 people.

In Vilonia, Arkansas, a town of some 3,000 people north of Little Rock, one death was confirmed and between 50 and 80 houses were destroyed by a tornado, according to Faulkner County emergency management. Police reported a path of destruction half a mile wide.

Law enforcement officials said there was another fatality in Washington County in northwest Arkansas from a drowning when a woman was swept away by rapidly moving water. The Madison County Sheriff's Office also said an elderly couple died after they were swept away in their car as War Eagle Creek rose in northern Arkansas on Monday afternoon.

The storms and flooding were the latest in the violent weather that has pummeled much of the mid-South this month. Two weeks ago at least seven people died from tornadoes in Arkansas, as more than 47 people died as storms tore a wide path from Oklahoma all the way to North Carolina.

Arkansas Governor Mike Beebe on Monday declared a state of emergency in response to tornadoes and flooding, which have caused problems on a number of roads and highways.

On Interstate 40 near Morrilton, vehicles were blown off the road, according to Arkansas State Police.

They said a church was destroyed at Morgan, Arkansas, just northwest of Little Rock. One tornado struck Little Rock Air Force Base, with initial reports indicating at least four homes in base housing were damaged. More than 100,000 people were without power in the state, authorities said.

In Missouri, water was topping the Black River levee at several points, which may lead to a failure of the levee system between the city of Poplar Bluff and the town of Qulin, the National Weather Service said on Monday.

County officials evacuated about 500 structures in the southeastern part of Poplar Bluff, which has about 17,000 residents.

Flood warnings on Monday prompted evacuations of hundreds of people in Indiana, Kentucky and Missouri following days of rain that led to rivers cresting over the flood stage, according to forecasters.