INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Here’s the latest information on the tornadoes that touched down in central Indiana.
A maintenance worker at a central Indiana apartment complex says half of the buildings don’t have roofs following tornadoes that hit the area.
Mitchell Carlson is a maintenance technician at the Park Place Apartments on the west side of Kokomo, a city about 40 miles north of Indianapolis.
He says the complex has 16 buildings, and “probably eight of them don’t have a roof.”
He says “it’s a madhouse,” but that there haven’t been any reported injuries. He also estimated that 20 to 30 vehicles had been damaged by falling tree limbs and air conditioners.
Indiana University Kokomo has canceled all campus events due to the severe weather. In Avon, a city near Indianapolis, school officials cited the severe weather in ordering all buses to return to the nearest school amid the storms.
Authorities say thousands of homes and businesses are without power in central Indiana after at least two tornadoes moved through the region.
Indiana Department of Homeland Security spokesman John Erickson says the agency is monitoring damage from a tornado Wednesday afternoon in Kokomo, a city about 40 miles north of Indianapolis.
He says the agency has received no reports of injuries or deaths from that storm. But he says the storm has cut power to about 12,000 homes and businesses in Howard County.
Erickson says the agency is also assessing whether a reported tornado touchdown in eastern Indianapolis caused any damage. He urged residents to remain in a safe place until the storm passes in areas where tornado warnings have been issued.
The National Weather Service is reporting that at least two tornadoes have struck central and north central Indiana.
The weather service issued a tornado warning saying a “confirmed large and destructive tornado” was spotted about 10 miles east of Kokomo, or about 40 miles north of Indianapolis
Meteorologist Dave Tucek says a tornado moved from the southwest side of Kokomo to the east-central side of that city. He says there are reports of damage but he had no specifics.
Local television station WTHR showed images of downed trees and a damaged Starbucks in the area.
The weather service also says Indiana State Police observed a tornado northwest of the Montgomery County town of New Ross, or about 35 miles northwest of Indianapolis, and moving east.
There were no immediate reports of injuries.
