At least 2 people killed as dangerous storms tear through central US with tornadoes and huge hail
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By CNN meteorologists Mary Gilbert, Chris Dolce, Briana Waxman and CNN’s Hanna Park, CNN
(CNN) — A rash of ferocious storms ripped across the central US overnight, spawning tornadoes and killing at least two people.
The two deaths were reported in northwest Indiana, a spokesperson for the Lake Village Volunteer Fire Department said Wednesday.
“Right before 7 p.m. (Tuesday), a large tornado hit our community, and it hit us hard,” spokesperson Lori Postma said.
Several people were hospitalized with injuries, officials said.
When first responders made an early assessment overnight, they found “total devastation,” Lake Township Volunteer Fire Department Chief Rob Churchill said.
“There were houses that were collapsed. There were people trapped in houses. There’s livestock loose,” he said.
“Lake Villages has experienced a tornado. There’s several houses that have been hit. A lot of damage. Please do not come here. Do not try to help,” Newton County Sheriff Shannon Cothran said in a video post from Lake Village, where at least one home appeared to be reduced to rubble behind him.
As storms push east early Wednesday, the main concerns shift to flash flooding and damaging winds.
Storms are ongoing from Texas to the Great Lakes, leaving more than 60,000 customers without power.
More injuries and widespread damage were reported in parts of Illinois and Indiana, according to officials.
A tornado tracked through the Kankakee, Illinois, area Tuesday evening.
Drone video from Kankakee County showed buildings torn apart and debris scattered across neighborhoods after a tornado moved through Tuesday evening. Emergency crews navigated the wreckage overnight with flashlights, stepping over splintered lumber and fallen trees as they searched damaged homes.
Kankakee Mayor Christopher W. Curtis told CNN there are no deaths or missing people in the county, though seven individuals sustained minor injuries. Several homes and commercial buildings were damaged, and multiple roads remain closed due to downed trees and power lines.
Brandy Peppin said she had only minutes of warning before the storm reached her house. Her brother called to say he could see the tornado heading straight toward her home.
“Thank God,” Peppin told CNN. “And I ran, grabbed my dog who was already in the closet where we go down into the crawl space. Literally pulled the door open. He fell into the crawl space, and I went down there and we rode the tornado out. It was so loud.”
“There would be little ‘bang bangs’ and then big ones,” she said. “You could just tell that there was debris hitting the house and hear things hitting the house — it was so loud.”
The Kankakee County Sheriff’s Office activated its Emergency Operations Center and filed an emergency declaration with Illinois.
“I want to remind area residents to check on their neighbors and loved ones but to avoid unnecessary travel, if at all possible,” Sheriff Mike Downey said.
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker said he had been briefed on the storm damage and was monitoring the situation.
“Keeping in our thoughts all Illinoisans impacted by the severe weather – we’ll be here to help them recover,” he said in a post on X.
Earlier Tuesday evening, the same supercell produced a tornado that briefly touched down near Pontiac, Illinois.
This tornadic supercell tracked east for over two hours from central Illinois through Northern Indiana, eventually prompting a Tornado Emergency – the highest level of tornado warning – for Knox, Indiana. It also dropped hail over 5 inches in diameter just south of Kankakee, which could set a new Illinois state record.
Thunderstorms also impacted Chicago, where half-dollar size hail fell. The Kansas City metro area reported hail up to 3.5 inches in diameter. Dallas-Fort Worth spent hours under a flash flood warning late Tuesday into the wee hours of Wednesday as storms parked over the area.
Farther south, a tornado was observed near Dudley, Texas, and baseball-sized hail was reported in Buffalo Gap, Texas.
Five tornado watches were in effect for much of Tuesday evening, stretching from the Mexican border north to Michigan.
Powerful storms could still be churning early Wednesday morning from the Lower Mississippi Valley into the Ohio Valley but a renewed threat is expected to develop in the afternoon.
A widespread level 2 of 5 risk of severe thunderstorms is in place Wednesday for more than 55 million people from Texas and Louisiana to Pennsylvania.
Damaging winds are the main threat with any storm Wednesday. A few tornadoes are possible, especially in the Lower Mississippi Valley and parts of Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.
No widespread severe thunderstorms are expected Thursday.
The-CNN-Wire
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CNN’s Holly Yan and Diego Mendoza contributed to this report.
