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Severe Storms Batter The Midwest, Including Reported Tornadoes That Shredded A FedEx Facility
Pavilion Township, Michigan – Severe storms swept into the Midwest early Wednesday, a day after two tornadoes ripped through a Michigan city and surrounding area, demolishing homes and business structures, including a FedEx factory.
According to the National Weather Service, tornadoes were initially recorded after dark Tuesday in sections of Michigan, Indiana, and Ohio. Tornado watches were also in effect in Illinois, Kentucky, and Missouri. The storms struck a day after a fatal tornado blasted through an Oklahoma town.
Travis Wycoff left his southwestern Michigan home Tuesday night after seeing on radar that a tornado had touched down in the Portage region. About five minutes later, he discovered the aftermath.
“There were a lot of people running through the streets trying to find people and their pets,” Wycoff stated. “It was just a lot of chaos.”
AP – VOR News image
Severe Storms Batter The Midwest, Including Reported Tornadoes That Shredded A FedEx Facility
Wycoff claimed he assisted an elderly couple get out of their partially collapsed home and liberated a service dog from a property whose owner was at work.
On Wednesday morning, he distributed water and volunteered to assist in cutting down fallen tree branches around the Pavilion Estates mobile home park.
“It is community. “I can’t sit a mile away from here when I was completely safe,” Wycoff added. “I couldn’t sit there in good conscience and not come down to try to help somehow.”
The National Weather Service verified that a tornado with a preliminary EF-0 rating and winds of 85 mph (137 kph) came down early Wednesday in southern Indiana, damaging homes in a subdivision north of Sellersburg, which is about 12 miles (19 kilometers) north of Louisville, Kentucky.
The Clark County Emergency Management Agency reported that the storm damaged 24 structures.
Candice Holmes, a Lewis & Clark condominium homeowner north of Sellersburg, said she, her husband, and son took refuge in their bathroom when they heard the approaching storm and “the wind just picked up all at once.”
“My husband and son went outside, opened the door, slammed it, and hurried back to the restroom. “And they held the bathroom door shut as it passed through,” Holmes told WDRB-TV. “It was done as soon as it began, but it was a frightening experience. And I’m delighted we’re still alive.
According to Jeff Craven, the meteorologist in charge of the weather service’s Pittsburgh office, survey teams will go out Wednesday to evaluate whether tornadoes affected Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia regions.
Tornadoes were detected on radar in Hancock County, West Virginia, and Jefferson County, Ohio, but according to Craven, teams will need to assess the damage to determine their rating.
Hancock County Schools in West Virginia canceled classes Wednesday due to “extensive overnight weather issues” throughout the county. News outlets reported damaged structures and power disruptions.
AP – VOR News Image
Severe Storms Batter The Midwest, Including Reported Tornadoes That Shredded A FedEx Facility
According to forecaster Tabitha Clarke, a National Weather Service team was also heading to Hot Springs, Arkansas, to assess the damage and strength of a tornado that struck early Wednesday morning.
The tornado damaged homes, toppled trees, and knocked down power lines. According to the state Division of Emergency Management, there were no initial reports of tornado-related injuries.
In Michigan, two tornadoes slammed through Portage and the nearby Pavilion Township, demolishing houses and commercial structures, including a FedEx facility.
No significant casualties were reported immediately, but municipal officials claimed in a news release that the tornadoes knocked off electricity to more than 20,000 residents. According to city officials, the majority of them will be without power until late Wednesday.
Due to broken electrical lines, approximately 50 people were trapped inside the FedEx building. However, corporate representative Shannon Davis confirmed late Tuesday that “all team members are safe and accounted for.”
According to Kalamazoo County Sheriff Richard Fuller, more than a dozen mobile homes in Pavilion Township were “totally destroyed.” At least 16 individuals were hurt there, he said, although the injuries were not life-threatening.
“We found homes in the roadway,” the sheriff stated late Tuesday. “We found houses in our neighbors’ homes. We discovered huge trees in residences.
“The cleanup efforts are enormous. We’re looking at homes across this community that have been completely demolished,” Fuller said Wednesday at the Pavilion Estates mobile home park.
A house with seven occupants “is totally on its top,” he remarked. They were able to self-rescue, get somewhere safe, and come back today.”
Pavilion Township is approximately 137 miles (220 kilometers) west of Detroit.
According to PowerOutage.us, over 30,000 people in Michigan lost power early Wednesday, with another 10,000 in Ohio.
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has proclaimed a state of emergency in four counties.
National Weather Service crews were surveying storm damage in several counties in Michigan’s southwest Lower Peninsula on Wednesday to determine whether tornadoes touched down there, including the two reported Tuesday night in the Portage area, according to meteorologist Mike Sutton of the weather service’s Grand Rapids office.
He said the Grand Rapids office had received 11 tornado reports from storm spotters, emergency managers, and the general public between late Tuesday afternoon and Tuesday night, but no tornado touchdowns had been confirmed as of 8 a.m. on Wednesday.
AP – VOR News Image
Severe Storms Batter The Midwest, Including Reported Tornadoes That Shredded A FedEx Facility
“It’s possible that these are numerous reports from the same storm. The real number of tornadoes could be fewer depending on what they uncover while surveying,” Sutton said.
The storms on Tuesday followed a day of torrential rain, strong winds, hail, and tornadoes in parts of the central United States. Tornadoes wreaked havoc across the Plains and Midwest this spring.
Across the United States, the entire week looks stormy. The Midwest and South are likely to bear the brunt of the poor weather for the remainder of the week, including Indianapolis, Memphis, Nashville, St. Louis, and Cincinnati, which have more than 21 million populations. It should become evident over the weekend.
On Monday night, a catastrophic tornado ripped through the 1,000-person community of Barnsdall, Oklahoma. At least one person was killed, and another is missing. Dozens of homes have been damaged.
It was the second tornado to strike Barnsdall in five weeks; on April 1, a twister with maximum wind speeds of 90 to 100 mph (145 to 161 kph) damaged homes and blew down trees and power poles.
Oklahoma communities, including Sulphur and Holdenville, are still recuperating after a tornado that killed four people and left others without electricity late last month.
SOURCE – (AP)
