ICYMI: Tornado-battered community comes to doctor's aid, powerful quake in the Rockies and how COVID-19 could impact weather forecasting

Over the past week, several tornadoes wreaked havoc across the central and southern portions of the country. A doctor working day in and day out to save COVID-19 patients had a heartbreaking encounter with one of them, but the very community he works to protect is stepping up to help him out. Meanwhile, it was a snowy start to April in one region, and Idaho was rocked by its strongest earthquake in decades.

Before we take a look at the major weather news of this week, it's only right to start with a recap of last weekend, when terrifying conditions unfolded across the central United States.

2 dozen weekend tornadoes leave parts of the central US in shambles

At least 22 people were reportedly hurt after a destructive EF3 tornado violently shredded through Jonesboro, Arkansas, with winds up to 140 mph. Several people nearby shared clips on social media as the twister ripped its path through the city. Given the scale of the mess left in its wake, it's a miracle that no one was killed.

Tornado damage at the Mall at Turtle Creek in Jonesboro, Arkansas. (Image/Jonesboro Police Department)

The death toll would surely have been higher than zero if coronavirus-related closures hadn't been in effect across the city, according to Jonesboro Mayor Harold Perrin. "It's a blessing in disguise," Perrin said. The Jonesboro tornado was one of two dozen that were reported across several states between Saturday and Sunday.

The twisters stemmed from the rounds of severe thunderstorms that pummeled the southern Plains and the Ohio Valley on March 28, prompting tornado watches from Illinois to Mississippi that lasted through the night. Along with those damaging tornadoes, people in the path of these conditions had to deal with golf ball-sized hail and powerful winds.

Henderson County, Kentucky, got slammed with an EF2 tornado before 8 p.m. on Saturday, according to the National Weather Service (NWS) office in Paducah. No one was hurt, but the tornado knocked down electrical poles and trees with its 115-mph winds. Another EF1 twister touched down in Lincoln, Illinois, for a few minutes at 9 p.m. Saturday.

You can read the storm reports from the severe weather last weekend by clicking here.

This doctor save lives every day; Now, his community is helping his family recover from Jonesboro tornado's devastation

While lives were fortunately not lost in the Jonesboro tornado, hundreds of families were left to lament over whatever was left of their damaged homes and belongings. Officials said about 150 residences were either mostly or completely destroyed, Jonesboro's KAIT-TV reported.

One of those people was an Arkansas doctor, risking his health around the clock to help others as he fights the coronavirus pandemic on the front lines. Dr. Jared Burks and his 1-year-old son, Zeke, went viral in a heartwarming yet heartbreaking photo on his quick visit home on break from yet another grueling shift. He had been living away from his family for over two weeks as he worked to save lives.

Days later, their family's home was ripped apart. His wife and child were at her mother's house, but Burks was inside his home as the tornado swiftly approached. He barely had time to make it to safety.

"By the time I got in the closet, it was about 30 seconds, and I just started hearing glass breaking, the walls started shaking, my ears started popping and the house felt like it lifted up and fell back down," Burks told ABC 15 News in Alabama. "I was thinking, 'Oh God, I don't want to die.'"

Burks escaped with his life - but his home was demolished. "We are all safe. Our house is gone. Jared was inside, but he survived by the grace of God. Please pray for us as we begin to pick up the pieces," Alyssa Burks posted on Facebook Saturday night. As of April 3, the Go Fund Me page set up to assist the family had far exceeded its $2,500 goal, raising over $122,000 thanks to the help of generous donors.

EF2 tornado touches down near Eufaula, Alabama

Tornado activity continued into the week, with at least three of them inflicting damage upon buildings and structures in Alabama on March 31, the NWS confirmed.

A large tornado was spotted on the ground that day near Eufaula. The tornado spun across U.S. Highway 431 and damaged some power lines and buildings along the way.

NWS meteorologists say that the damage it left behind was consistent with that of an EF2. Eufaula Mayor Jack Tibbs believes about 15 homes were damaged, and he reported just one minor injury, according to WSFA-TV.

Idaho feels its strongest earthquake in almost 40 years

Later on Tuesday, a historic earthquake shook Idaho with such strength that the rattling was felt in Utah, Washington, Utah, Nevada - even Canada. The Gem State hasn't experienced one this powerful since 1983's deadly Borah Peak earthquake.

The epicenter of Tuesday's 6.5-magnitude earthquake was about 78 miles northeast of Boise. It struck at 5:52 p.m. local time, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS). The Boise Police Department reported no damage, but people could certainly see the impacts of the earthquake.

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One woman says she felt it over 500 miles away in Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada, showing her swaying chandelier in a Twitter video.

The NWS office in Boise reported that the strong quake was the second-largest to occur globally within the 30-day period before it struck.

April off to snowy start in northern Plains

The snow that dumped inches upon inches over the northern Plains at the start of April was no joke. The higher elevations up in the mountainous areas received the most of it.

A snowy and steamy scene in Yellowstone National Park on Thursday morning. (NPS)

Wyoming's mountains, for instance, were covered with between 10 and 20 inches of snow, while a mountain north of Cooke City, Montana, was hit with 23 inches - the highest snow total reported in the region.

The snow made its way eastward into the Dakotas by Thursday morning. On Wednesday, Rapid City, South Dakota, received a record-setting 6.5 inches of snow, which the city's NWS office says makes it the snowiest start to April on record.

Fewer flights due to coronavirus pandemic could affect weather forecasting

The far-reaching impacts of the coronavirus pandemic have revealed themselves in all kinds of ways over the past several weeks. Now, it appears that reliable weather forecasting could also take a hit thanks to a decline in the number of research aircrafts taking flight.

Passenger and cargo aircraft are seen stored at Southern California Logistics Airport, Wednesday, March 25, 2020, in Victorville, California. As demand for air travel drops amid the coronavirus outbreak, commercial aircraft are being parked at facilities that include remote desert airports, including the Southern California Logistics Airport in Victorville about 90 miles northeast of Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Those planes collect crucial temperature and wind data that aid in improving the initial atmospheric conditions that drive global and regional weather forecast models, AccuWeather's John Roach reported. National weather centers all over the world use that data to make forecasts more accurate.

"We will likely see the biggest impacts on our ability to forecast convective weather, such as thunderstorms and other local storms, just as we are approaching severe weather season in the Northern Hemisphere," said AccuWeather's Scott Mackaro, vice president of Science, Innovation and Development.

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