As Canada finds itself caught up in an escalating trade war with the United States while simultaneously facing threats of annexation from President Donald Trump, one historian at McMaster University in Hamilton says he’s seeing subtle signs of support from Canada’s head of state, King Charles III.

“This is a tremendously awkward position for the monarchy to be in, largely because it’s never really happened before,” historian Justin Vovk explains. “Monarchy functions on this idea of precedent. They do things based on how they’ve done it in the past.”

In addition to teaching at McMaster University, Vovk is also a member of the advisory board with the Institute For The Study of The Crown in Canada, which studies the constitutional role of the monarchy as well as the functions performed by the sovereign, governor general and lieutenant governors.

As an expert on the Canadian Crown, Vovk says he’s observed King Charles making delicate gestures in support of Canada.

“We are seeing things like him meeting with both Justin Trudeau and Mark Carney in fairly short order. That’s quite unusual,” he explains. “We saw the King presenting a ceremonial sword to representatives of our Senate. We saw the King wearing what seemed to be very Canadian colours in press conferences and meetings he had after his meeting with Justin Trudeau.”

Still, Vovk doesn’t expect any direct statements from the Crown, given that the Royal Family is bound by tradition and constitutional mechanisms to exercise restraint.

“We’ve seen a lot of buzz around the Princess of Wales, Kate, at the Commonwealth Service, where she appeared entirely in red with an accent of white pearls, and everyone was jumping on that saying it must be a sign of support for Canada,” he added. “So these are the sorts of ways that we would see the monarchy lending that support.”

Given the monarchy’s typical pragmatic silence, Vovk believes the recent gestures from King Charles may be an indicator that he’s been asked to show support by the Canadian government.

“It means that our government has already said, we want these signals to happen. We are looking now for these signs of support from the Crown as this institution that is supposed to represent all Canadians,” he says, adding that the gestures are largely intended for the general public who are looking to see if the King is connected with the issues Canada is facing.

“They can look at a video of him planting a red maple on the grounds of Buckingham Palace, which happened in March as one of those signs [that] the king is conscious of Canada. He’s thinking about us,” Vovk explains.

The owners of the Vancouver Whitecaps FC say they are in discussions with the City of Vancouver about the possibility of building a soccer stadium on city property at the PNE fairgrounds.

HOPKINSVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Torrential rains and flash flooding battered parts of the Midwest and South on Friday, killing a boy in Kentucky who was swept away as he walked to catch his school bus. Many communities were left reeling from tornadoes that destroyed entire neighborhoods and killed at least seven people earlier this week.

Round after round of heavy rains have pounded the central U.S. for days, and forecasters warned that it could persist through Saturday. Satellite imagery showed thunderstorms lined up like freight trains over communities in Arkansas, Tennessee and Kentucky, according to the national Weather Prediction Center in Maryland.

In Frankfort, Kentucky, a 9-year-old boy died in the morning after floodwaters swept him away while he was walking to a school bus stop, Gov. Andy Beshear said on social media. Officials said Gabriel Andrews’ body was found about a half-mile from where he went missing.

The downtown area of Hopkinsville, Kentucky — a city of 31,000 residents 72 miles (116 kilometers) northwest of Nashville — was submerged. A dozen people were rescued from homes, and dozens of pets were moved away from rising water, a fire official said.

“The main arteries through Hopkinsville are probably 2 feet under water,” Christian County Judge-Executive Jerry Gilliam said earlier.

Tony Kirves and some friends used sandbags and a vacuum to try to hold back rising waters that covered the basement and seeped into the ground floor of his photography business in Hopkinsville. Downtown was “like a lake,” he said.

“We’re holding ground,” he said. “We’re trying to maintain and keep it out the best we can.”

A corridor from northeast Texas through Arkansas and into southeast Missouri, which has a population of about 2.3 million, could see clusters of severe thunderstorms late Friday. The National Weather Service’s Oklahoma-based Storm Prediction Center warned of the potential for intense tornadoes and large hail.

Flash flood threat looms over many states

Flash flood emergencies were issued Friday night in at least four cities in southeastern Missouri, according to the NWS. One was in Van Buren, where there were at least 15 water rescues amid heavy rainfall and a rapidly rising Current River, according to Justin Gibbs, weather service meteorologist.

“Unfortunately it’s been as bad as we were expecting it to be,” he said.

Heavy rains were expected to continue in parts of Missouri, Kentucky and elsewhere in the coming days and could produce dangerous flash floods. The weather service said 45 river locations in multiple states were expected to reach major flood stage, with extensive flooding of structures, roads and other critical infrastructure possible.

In Christian County, which includes Hopkinsville, 6 to 10 inches (15.2 to 25.4 centimeters) fell since Wednesday evening, the National Weather Service said Friday afternoon. The rain caused the Little River to surge over its banks, and 4 to 8 inches (10.2 to 20.3 centimeters) more could fall by Sunday, it said.

A pet boarding business was under water, forcing rescuers to move dozens of dogs to a local animal shelter, said Gilliam, the county executive. Crews rescued people from four or five vehicles and multiple homes, mostly by boat, said Randy Graham, the emergency management director in Christian County.

“This is the worst I’ve ever seen downtown,” Gilliam said.

Hundreds of Kentucky roads were impassable because of floodwaters, downed trees or mud and rock slides, and the number of closures were likely to increase with more rain late Friday and Saturday, Beshear said.

A landslide blocked a nearly 3-mile (4.8-kilometer) stretch of Mary Ingles Highway in the state’s north, according to the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet. A landslide closed the same section of road in 2019, and it reopened last year, WLWT-TV reported.

Flash flooding is particularly worrisome in rural Kentucky where water can rush off the mountains into the hollows. Less than four years ago, dozens died in flooding in the eastern part of the state.

Extreme flooding across a corridor that includes Louisville, Kentucky, and Memphis — which have major cargo hubs — could also lead to shipping and supply chain delays, said Jonathan Porter, chief meteorologist at AccuWeather.

Swollen rivers and tributaries also swamped some parts in Ohio, and Gov. Mike DeWine said about 70 roads were closed. The southern half of the state was expected to see moderate flooding, which has not happened in four years, he added.

Forecasters attributed the violent weather to warm temperatures, an unstable atmosphere, strong wind shear and abundant moisture streaming from the Gulf. At least 318 tornado warnings have been issued by the National Weather Service since this week’s outbreak began Wednesday.

The outburst comes at a time when nearly half of National Weather Service forecast offices have 20% vacancy rates after Trump administration job cuts — twice that of just a decade ago.

Tornadoes leave a path of damage, and more could be coming

At least two reports of observed tornadoes were noted Friday evening in Missouri and Arkansas, according to the National Weather Service.

“TAKE COVER NOW!” the weather service said on X in response to the one on the ground around the small Missouri town of Advance.

Earlier in the week, seven people were killed in the initial wave of storms that spawned powerful tornadoes on Wednesday and early Thursday in Tennessee, Missouri and Indiana.

Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee said entire neighborhoods in the hard-hit town of Selmer were “completely wiped out,” after it was hit by a tornado with winds estimated by the NWS of up to 160 mph (257 kph). Advance warning of storms likely saved lives as hundreds of people sheltered at a courthouse, the governor said.

In neighboring Arkansas, a tornado near Blytheville lofted debris at least 25,000 feet (7.6 kilometers) high, according to weather service meteorologist Chelly Amin. The state’s emergency management office reported damage in 22 counties from tornadoes, wind, hail and flash flooding.

Bulldozers cleared rubble along the highway that crosses through Lake City, where a tornado with winds of 150 mph (241 kph) sheared roofs off homes, collapsed brick walls and tossed cars into trees.

Mississippi’s governor said at least 60 homes were damaged. And in far western Kentucky, four people were injured while taking shelter in a vehicle under a church carport, according to the emergency management office in Ballard County.

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Schreiner reported from Shelbyville, Kentucky. Associated Press writers Andrew DeMillo in Little Rock, Arkansas; Jonathan Mattise in Nashville, Tennessee; Adrian Sainz in Memphis, Tennessee; Jeff Martin in Marietta, Georgia; Obed Lamy in Hopkinsville; John Raby in Charleston, West Virginia; and Hallie Golden in Seattle contributed.

George Walker Iv And Bruce Schreiner, The Associated Press