(By Steve Lyttle, slyttle@charlotteobserver.com) Severe thunderstorms and tornadoes pummeled the mid-South on Monday afternoon, and the question is whether those storms will retain their strength overnight as they move into the Charlotte area.The Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Okla., says it has received more than 260 reports of tornadoes, damaging winds and hail this afternoon from Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Arkansas.