At least three people have died after a tornado ripped through parts of Indiana, wiping out a trailer park.
Indiana State Police confirmed to NBC that three people had died after severe weather struck a trailer park in Winchester.
Winchester’s government announced on social media that a tornado was on the ground and moving at 40mph.
The Randolph County Sheriff’s Office said on social media that there was ‘heavy storm damage’ and urged people to avoid the Winchester area.
According to the weather service, more than 13 million people in the country were under tornado watches.
Winchester’s government announced on social media that a tornado was on the ground and moving at 40mph
Winchester’s government announced on social media that a tornado was on the ground and moving at 40mph
Images and videos on social media show large twisters in and around Winchester and in other areas of the state.
Others depict the aftermath, with debris scattered across roads and large branches snapped.
Joseph Nield, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Indianapolis, said it was highly likely a tornado caused the damage in the Winchester area.
He said: ‘It appears that is the most significant damage that we’ve had reported to us.’
Randolph County Sheriff’s Office said on social media that there is ‘heavy storm damage’ and urged people to avoid the area as emergency crews responded.
A Facebook post on the Winchester Community High School page said all the schools in that school district would be closed on Friday.
Another post said the high school had electricity and was open for emergency use for people who ‘need somewhere warm and dry.’
Earlier, storms damaged homes and trailers in the Ohio River communities of Hanover and Lamb in Indiana.
Jefferson County Sheriff Ben Flint said storms destroyed three or four single-family homes and four or five other structures.
Sheriff also added that the storms had demolished several uninhabited campers along the river. ‘We were fortunate that no one was injured,’ Flint added.
Randolph County Sheriff’s Office said on social media that there is ‘heavy storm damage’ and urged people to avoid the area as emergency crews responded
Images and videos on social media show large twisters in and around Winchester and in other areas of the state
Sgt. Stephen Wheeles of the Indiana State Police said a suspected tornado struck Jefferson County, damaging several homes and downing trees and power lines.
He posted photos on X, formerly known as Twitter, showing one home with its roof torn off and another missing roof shingles as well as an image of a baseball-sized hailstone.
Around 2,000 Duke Energy customers in Hanover, Indiana, lost power at one point during the storms, the company reported.
Forecasters were also aware of damage in the Lakeview, Ohio, area and across the region and plan to survey the area Friday to confirm the tornado, said Scott Hickman, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Wilmington, Ohio.
That includes a ‘mass casualty’ event that was declared after a tornado plowed through a trailer park in Ohio, leaving people under the wreckage.
The occupants of Lakeside RV Park, in Lakeview, Ohio, were hit by a tornado on Thursday evening.
Images of the site has since emerged on social media showing the park left completely devastated.
What is left of campervans is seen twisted and broken at the side of the road, alongside ripped down trees.
Images of the site has since emerged on social media showing the park left completely devastated
What is left of campervans is seen twisted and broken at the side of the road, alongside ripped down trees
The occupants of Lakeside RV Park, in Lakeview, Ohio, were hit by a tornado on Thursday evening
A number of buildings in Lakeview were destroyed, Amber Fagan, the president and CEO of the Indian Lake Area Chamber of Commerce, told ABC 6 news.
‘It’s pure devastation, I have never seen anything like this in my entire life. ‘Our Lakeview municipal building is demolished.
‘Our laundromat is gone. The old plastics building is just completely demolished. Downtown, it’s bad.’
A spokesperson for Logan County’s Emergency Management Agency confirmed the tornado.
She said there were no confirmed reports of fatalities or injuries. Lakeview is in Logan County.
The spokesperson added: ‘We had a tornado strike here in Logan County. There is damage, it is still being assessed. We have people on the ground, doing that work.’
Earlier, storms damaged homes and trailers in the Ohio River communities of Hanover and Lamb in Indiana.
Sgt. Stephen Wheeles of the Indiana State Police said a suspected tornado struck Jefferson County, damaging several homes and downing trees and power lines
Jefferson County Sheriff Ben Flint said storms destroyed three or four single-family homes and four or five other structures
Around 2,000 Duke Energy customers in Hanover, Indiana, lost power at one point during the storms, the company reported
In Kentucky, Trimble County Emergency Management Director Andrew Stark said the storms damaged at least 50 structures, including homes.
‘We have a whole bunch of damage,’ Stark told the Courier Journal of Louisville.
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear issued a statement saying a tornado touched down along the Indiana state border in Gallatin and Trimble counties.
He urged Kentuckians to stay aware of the weather as more storms were expected across the state Thursday evening and overnight.
‘It does appear that there is some really significant damage, especially to the town of Milton in Trimble County,’ Beshear said. ‘We think there are over 100 structures that are potentially damaged.’
The state´s emergency operations center was activated to coordinate storm response, Beshear said.
Large pieces of hail also was reported in parts of the St. Louis area this afternoon.
There were unconfirmed reports of tornadoes in Jefferson County, Missouri, and Monroe County, Illinois, but no immediate reports of damage.
Severe weather was possible into Thursday night from northeast Texas to Indiana and Ohio, the National Weather Service said on X.
It issued a tornado watch for parts of Arkansas, Illinois, Kansas and Missouri until 9 p.m. Central Daylight Time.