Mayflower , Arkansas ( CNN ) -- Tornadoes tore through several states Sunday evening as severe weather slammed into parts of the central United States . Authorities confirmed at least nine fatalities : eight in Arkansas and one in Oklahoma . Damage is `` widespread '' after a tornado hit Mayflower , Arkansas , and there are numerous reports of injuries , said Matt DeCample , a spokesman for the state 's governor . Damage is also widespread in Vilonia , north of Little Rock , he said . `` I ca n't even get down the main street down to the middle of town , '' Vilonia Mayor James Firestone said . `` I am trying to make my way through the downed trees and power lines . What I am seeing , it is a lot of damage . I 've been listening to the rescue folks . They 're saying people have to be extracted from vehicles . ... It looks pretty bad . From what I understand , there has been a subdivision that 's been leveled . '' In Mayflower , overturned , smashed cars were visible along the freeway as search and rescue teams combed the area . Video from CNN affiliate KARK showed a decimated building in Mayflower surrounded by scattered debris and emergency vehicles . Interstate 40 was shut down as authorities removed debris from the highway after the tornado struck Mayflower , said Arkansas State Patrol spokesman Bill Sadler . Mayflower is roughly 25 miles northwest of Little Rock . The National Weather Service 's Little Rock office tweeted a series of messages warning of tornadoes , reporting damage and telling residents to take cover . A tornado crossing I-40 `` was reported to be as much as a half-mile wide , '' the weather service said . Officials reported overturned semi-trucks and destroyed homes , the weather service said . Witnesses also spotted a twister in the Oklahoma town of Quapaw on Sunday , an emergency official said , as severe weather slammed into parts of the central United States . Joe Dan Morgan , emergency manager in Ottawa County , Oklahoma , said ambulances had deployed after reports of a funnel on the ground in Quapaw , and rescuers were working in an area where a concrete wall crashed onto a car . Numerous buildings in the town were damaged , said Keli Cain with Oklahoma Emergency Management . Kelly Flecks , an emergency dispatcher in Ottawa County , also said a tornado hit the town . `` Search and rescue is under way involving several agencies , '' she said . `` Please tell the public to stay away so they can do their jobs . We ca n't confirm anything else at the moment . Quapaw is in the northeastern part of the state , near the borders with Kansas and Missouri . Also Sunday evening , a tornado emergency was declared for Maumelle , Arkansas , the weather service said . Maumelle is also northwest of Little Rock in central Arkansas . Storm spotters were tracking a confirmed tornado with reports of damage , the weather service said . A tornado emergency is issued when a storm is producing a life-threatening , confirmed tornado capable of significant destruction . Strong tornadoes , damaging winds , and large hail were expected for parts of the Central Plains and along the Mississippi River Valley on Sunday , CNN meteorologists said . Forecasters from the weather service warned that numerous tornadoes could hit , `` with a few intense tornadoes likely . '' Large hail and damaging winds are also possible , forecasters said . Storm chasers and witnesses posted images of twisters in several states on social media . Mike Smith from TeamBCX shared a picture of white funnel spinning against a dark sky near a field in Baxter Springs , Kansas , where there were several reports of damage from a tornado Sunday . Video : Surprising tornado tidbits . Get the fast facts on tornadoes . North Carolina cleans up from twisters . Video : See a rare tornado in Northern California . CNN 's Devon Sayers reported from Mayflower . CNN 's Dave Alsup and Matthew Stucker reported from Atlanta . CNN 's Chad Myers , Catherine E. Shoichet and Sean Morris contributed to this report .
NEW : Fatalities are reported in Oklahoma and Arkansas . Vilonia mayor : I 'm seeing `` a lot of damage '' ; a subdivision has been leveled . Damage is `` widespread '' in Mayflower , Arkansas , an official says . The tornado touched down at about 9:45 p.m. local time on the outskirts of town near Highway 6 and Interstate 40.