A series of powerful storms swept over the central and southern U.S. over the Memorial Day holiday weekend, killing at least 21 people and leaving a wide trail of destroyed homes, businesses and power outages. The destructive storms caused deaths in Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Kentucky and were just north of an oppressive, early season heat wave setting records from south Texas to Florida. Forecasters said the severe weather could shift to the East Coast later Monday and warned millions of people outdoors for the holiday to watch the skies. Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, who earlier declared a state of emergency, and at a Monday press conference that four people had died in four different counties. “We know that there are at least four families this morning that have suffered the loss of a loved one less than 24 hours ago that are hurting,” Beshear said. “And we ought to rally around them and do everything we can to carry them.” The death toll of 21 also included seven deaths in Cooke County, Texas, from a Saturday tornado that tore through a mobile home park, officials said, and eight deaths across Arkansas. Two people died in Mayes County, Oklahoma, which is east of Tulsa, authorities said. The injured included guests at an outdoor wedding. Read more: https://www.9news.com/article/news/nation-world/at-least-15-dead-after-severe-weather-carves-path-of-ruin-across-multiple-states-in-the-south-tx-ar-ok/507-388cd760-c244-415d-82e5-b99926a95c63 Video Source: CNN More local videos here: https://bit.ly/2Pa0d1l Subscribe to NEXT: http://bit.ly/2eP1GwI Stay connected: 9NEWS Website: http://www.9news.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ilike9news Twitter: https://twitter.com/9NEWS Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/9newsdenver/ Download the 9NEWS App: https://www.9news.com/appredirect/ Sign up for the 9NEWSLETTER: https://www.9news.com/email 9NEWS (KUSA) is located in Denver, Colorado.