Strong Tornadoes Sweep Southwest Michigan, Leaving Destruction in Their Wake
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On Tuesday night, fierce tornadoes and storms ravaged the southwest region of Michigan, leaving a trail of destruction in their wake. Homes and businesses were destroyed or damaged, and several residents sustained injuries. Moreover, millions from northeastern Texas to the Carolinas faced at least a mild risk of severe weather on Wednesday.
In Pavilion Township, at least a dozen people were injured in a trailer park as a tornado touched down on Tuesday, according to a county official. The township, situated in Kalamazoo County, witnessed 15 to 20 individuals sustaining minor injuries and being transported to local hospitals, as reported by the county’s emergency management spokesperson, Andrew Alspach.
In the neighboring city of Portage, approximately 11 kilometers south of Kalamazoo, photos and videos depicted significant damage to a FedEx facility, with its roof and structure severely impacted by the storm on Tuesday night. Fortunately, there were no serious injuries reported, stated a FedEx representative to CNN.
Around 50 individuals found themselves trapped in the building due to fallen wires, mentioned Taylor Koopman, a spokesperson for the Kalamazoo County administrator’s office. Efforts to clear the wires were underway as of 9:30 PM Eastern Time. However, according to Portage city spokesperson Mary Beth Block, the building had been cleared by authorities.
According to the National Weather Service, two tornadoes struck the Portage area on Tuesday. The city authorities issued a statement citing significant damages to residential and commercial buildings, fallen trees blocking many roads, and several reports of gas leaks. With a rare tornado emergency declared in Union City, situated approximately 16 kilometers northwest of Coldwater, the region witnessed the impact of a large and destructive tornado, moving northeast at 45 mph, as reported by the National Weather Service.
As per the Storm Prediction Center, Michigan reported at least nine tornado sightings on Tuesday, with reports of softball-sized hail in some areas. Over 34,000 homes and businesses in Michigan were without power on Wednesday morning, according to poweroutage.us. Additionally, over 16,000 residents in Ohio were in darkness.
Governor Gretchen Whitmer expressed solidarity with those affected by the severe weather in southwest Michigan, declaring a state of emergency for Kalamazoo, St. Joseph, Branch, and Cass counties on Tuesday night. She reassured that emergency teams would continue monitoring the situation and coordinating resources for the affected people. Following Tuesday’s onslaught of tornadoes, large hail, damaging wind gusts, and heavy rain, particularly across the Great Lakes and Ohio Valley, much of the eastern United States braced for another round of storms on Wednesday. More than 145 million people were anticipated to face some form of severe weather on Wednesday, spanning from Texas to Maine.
