One person is dead after a tornado reportedly blew through the eastern part of Arkansas on Tuesday, officials said.

The National Weather Service said the twister swept through Pope County a day after a cluster of tornadoes ripped through the Midwest, destroying homes and knocking a train off its tracks. Two people were killed in Missouri.

One man in Illinois said he was drinking coffee in a restaurant when "a tornado just popped right out of the clouds."

He said he hunkered down in a basement and in his words, "prayed like a sissy."

The two Missouri deaths include an elderly woman who was killed near Strafford in Greene County, and a 53-year-old woman who died in a rural area north of Marshfield in Webster County.

In McHenry County in northern Illinois, about 500 people fled their homes after a suspected tornado knocked over rail cars carrying hazardous materials.

Several homes were destroyed in Poplar Grove, Ill., where authorities rescued motorists trapped by downed, live electrical lines and crews searched damaged structures to make sure no one was trapped. Three people suffered minor injuries.

A tornado also ripped through Wisconsin's Kenosha County.

Sgt. Gil Benn of the Kenosha County Sheriff's Department said six to eight homes were severely damaged in the Wheatland area, and an unknown number of cars were blown off the road on Highway 50, WISN-TV in Milwaukee reported.

Authorities report 11 houses in Wheatland were destroyed but there were no serious injuries. The sheriff called that a miracle.

The tornadoes are springing up as record-high winter temperatures are reported across wide areas of the country.

Forecasters said the unusually warm air creates the right atmosphere for the January twisters.

As far north as Buffalo, N.Y., thermometers were reading above 60 degrees Tuesday.

1 Dies In Indiana Flooding

Flooding also plagued some areas. At least one person is dead from flooding in parts of northern Indiana.

Storms dropped more than 5 inches of rain, pushing many rivers and streams over their banks.

Authorities say a man was swept into the flood waters in Remington and drowned Tuesday morning as he was trying to get out of his house.

An emergency official said up to 150 people were evacuated around Remington and up to 30 homes were affected by water that was waist-high in some places. Evacuees were sheltered at churches.

In nearby White County, an official said boats were helping evacuate hundreds of people in Monticello, Blue Water Beach and Diamond Point about 80 miles northwest of Indianapolis.