A cluster of tornadoes swept through three Midwestern states overnight, leaving at least three people dead and many more injured.
Trails of destruction were left in the wake of severe storms Thursday night across parts of Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana and Arkansas.
At least 40 people were injured and dozens of homes damaged in an Indiana community. According to the police, three people have been confirmed dead.
Neighborhoods in eastern Indiana and western Ohio were extremely torn up by the extreme weather conditions.
It became clear as the sun rose on Friday morning that entire cities were flattened and destroyed by the savage storm.
The worst hit appeared to be the Indian Lake area of Ohio’s Logan County, northwest of Columbus, with the villages of Lakeview and Russells Point destroyed. At least three people died, Sheriff Randy Dodds said.
Debris litters the ground after a violent storm in Lakeview, Ohio
Residents of the Lakeside RV Park in Lakeview, Ohio were hit by a tornado Thursday night
Debris is visible through the window of a damaged home after the severe storms in Lakeview, Ohio
Emergency crews and residents gather around Winchester, Indiana, Friday morning after severe weather hit the area Thursday night. The roof of a Goodwill location off Indiana Highway 27 was torn off and its walls were shredded
Greg McDougle walks near debris Friday, March 15, 2024 after the suspected tornado in Lakeview
Search crews went into neighborhoods that had been blocked by gas leaks and downed trees overnight and made another pass in areas that were checked in the dark just after the storm, Dodds said.
‘Three people are confirmed dead. We are working to identify the victims,” said a statement from Chief Deputy Joe Kopus of the Logan County Sheriff’s Office. Local reporting earlier indicated that six people were dead.
– As far as we know, we have many injuries. We do not know the extent of the damage, says Timmers. ‘A motorhome pitch was affected.’
Photos of the site have since surfaced on social media showing the park completely destroyed.
What remains of campervans are seen twisted and broken on the side of the road along with downed trees.
Families and neighbors help each other clean up after a tornado hit the Indian Lake, Ohio area
Debris is visible near a damaged home after the extreme weather that tore through the Midwest Thursday night and Friday morning
Blaine Schmidt holds his guitar near his damaged home after a severe storm Friday, March 15, 2024, in Lakeview, Ohio. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)
Cars are damaged from severe storms Friday, March 15, 2024, in Winchester, Ind. Severe storms with suspected tornadoes have damaged homes and businesses in the central United States. (Grace Hollars/The Indianapolis Star via AP)
The remains of a destroyed church are seen in Winchester, Ind., Friday, March 15, 2024, after it was destroyed in a storm that hit the area Thursday night. (AP Photo/Isabella Volmert)
The remains of a destroyed church are seen in Winchester, Ind., Friday, March 15, 2024, after it was destroyed in a storm that hit the area Thursday night. (AP Photo/Isabella Volmert)
“There’s a lot that we don’t know yet,” Indiana State Police Superintendent Doug Carter said, confirming that police had initially reported the three deaths.
Just ten miles west of Logan County, the town of Winchester, Indiana, was left devastated when a tornado lashed that community around 8pm Thursday, leaving buildings flattened and residents with ‘significant damage’.
The storm damaged a Walmart and a Taco Bell in Winchester, according to Sheriff Art Moystner.
The Randolph County Homeland Security Emergency Management Agency confirmed that 38 people were injured in Winchester, 12 of whom were hospitalized.
About 17 miles west of Winchester, the small town of Selma saw half of its buildings badly damaged by a possible tornado.
“We are relieved to report that so far only minor injuries have been reported, with one person transported to the hospital for treatment,” the Delaware County Emergency Management Agency said in a news release.
Homes and businesses are damaged after a violent storm overnight Friday, March 15, 2024, in Winchester, Ind. Severe storms with suspected tornadoes have damaged homes and businesses in the central United States. (Grace Hollars/The Indianapolis Star via AP)
Photos of the site have since surfaced on social media showing the park completely destroyed
What remains of campervans are seen twisted and broken on the side of the road along with downed trees
The Winchester government announced on social media that a tornado was on the ground and moving at 40 mph
About 2,000 Duke Energy customers in Hanover, Indiana, lost power at one point during the storms, the company reported
Houses and trailers in Hanover and Lamb were also damaged by the storms.
In Milton, Kentucky, two people were injured when their car was hit by debris from a tornado that damaged as many as 100 homes and businesses, Trimble County Emergency Management Director Andrew Stark said.
In Arkansas, a probable tornado hit the retirement community of Hot Springs Village, about 40 miles (64 kilometers) southwest of Little Rock, according to National Weather Service meteorologist Erik Green.
Baseball-sized hail also fell and some buildings were destroyed, but there were no reports of fatalities or injuries, Green said.
There were reports of tornadoes in Jefferson County, Missouri and Monroe County, Illinois.
More severe weather was forecast for parts of the South on Friday, with the possibility of damaging winds and isolated tornadoes, according to the National Weather Service.
A state of emergency was declared in Kentucky just after noon Friday by state governor Andy Beshear, the Weather Channel reported.
‘We have significant damage to a number of structures, particularly in Milton, in Trimble County. Although, thankfully, every report we’ve received so far indicates there have been no deaths and only a few minor injuries – and that’s the most important thing,” Beshear said in a press release.