Midwest and Great Lakes Brace for More Severe Storms After Night of Tornadoes

Communities across the Midwest are initiating cleanup efforts after multiple tornadoes and severe weather impacted areas from the Great Lakes to Texas. The National Weather Service forecasts another round of severe thunderstorms across parts of the Southern Plains, Mississippi Valley, and Great Lakes on Saturday afternoon and into the night. Approximately 28 million people are under the threat of severe weather on Saturday. The primary threats include damaging winds, with potential for isolated hail, flash flooding, and possible tornadoes. The storms are expected to reach the East Coast overnight. Over 70,000 customers in the Midwest and Great Lakes regions are without power as of Saturday morning, with the majority of outages in Illinois and Missouri. In Rochester, Minnesota, about 90 miles south of Minneapolis, at least one tornado touched down on Friday. Resident David Vetsch described the storm as sounding "like a freight train." The main part of the tornado struck his 89-year-old father's house, causing extensive damage, though his father was unharmed. In Lena, Illinois, another tornado caused significant damage on Friday afternoon, knocking out power and making the village inaccessible due to downed trees and wires. Photos from Lena show massive trees toppled over and blocking roads. A resident named Marcia recounted hearing a tree fall in her front yard, leading her to seek shelter in the basement. According to radio communications from public safety officials in Stephenson County, there were reports of "fairly extensive damage" at the village's elementary and high schools, both of which had students inside at the time of the tornado. No injuries were reported. Lena faced additional storms throughout Friday night. Stephenson County Sheriff Steve Stovall stated that the weather "did not result in loss of life or serious injury." Lena is located about 120 miles from Chicago. In suburban Kansas City, a tornado destroyed homes and knocked out power, but no deaths or serious injuries were reported. Damage was also reported throughout Oklahoma, according to the state's Department of Emergency Management. In Ponca City and Kay County, trees were downed, and in Osage County's McCord area, trees and power lines were also knocked down. Some homes in the region had their roofs damaged, and a marina at Kaw Lake was damaged.