INDIANA – Teams from the National Weather Service visited multiple Indiana counties Monday to survey damage from severe storms and tornadoes.
The dangerous weather swept through central Indiana Sunday afternoon and evening, leaving a path of destruction.
The National Weather Service has confirmed four tornados in Indiana.
Martin County
Two tornados hit Martin County.
Martin County EMA director Cameron Wolf confirmed, the tornado “leveled” two homes and took down many trees and power lines in Rutherford and Lost River Township.
The tornado claimed one life on Windham Road and sent the male’s wife via air ambulance to an Evansville hospital.
One tornado, which NWS said caused the death, began in southern Martin County before crossing into Dubois County. That tornado, which was classified as an EF2, reached max wind speeds of 120 miles per hour with a max width of 565 yards and a path length of over 9 miles.
“There was literally tree, upon tree, upon tree, upon tree,” added Wolf. “I mean it was just solid. So, it’s taking a while to get that cleared up.”
The second tornado, NWS said, began in Daviess County before stretching through to northern Martin County. That tornado was an EF1 and reached max wind speeds of 100 mph.
Residents reported large hail in the area, with one hailstone measuring three inches in diameter.
Daviess County
In Daviess County, residents reported multiple trees down on homes and cars, along with a hailstorm that lasted several minutes, according to preliminary NWS reports.
US 231 north of Farler had to be shut down while crews cleared storm damage.
An EF1 tornado hit southwest Monroe County reached max wind speeds of 100 mph and had a max width of 100 yards. It had a path length of more than 1.5 miles.
Johnson County
An EF2 hit Johnson County with an estimated wind peak of 115 miles per hour and a path length of more than 5 miles. Officials said 75 homes suffered moderate to severe damage.
Governor’s response
Gov. Eric Holcomb said the state would provide resources to help local officials with storm assessment and recovery.
“Our thoughts and hearts go out to those impacted by yesterday’s tornadoes,” the governor said in a statement on Twitter. “Today the Indiana Department of Homeland Security will have staff on the ground assessing the damage to help local jurisdictions determine their rebuilding and recovery needs.”
Holcomb said the Indiana Department of Homeland Security would provide further updates once they’ve collected information from the assessments.
