LAKEVIEW — A Thursday night storm caused substantial damage near Indian Lake.
Officials plan to survey the area Friday to confirm if it was a tornado, said Scott Hickman, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Wilmington, Ohio.
A number of buildings in Lakeview, which is in Logan County, were destroyed, Amber Fagan, the president and CEO of the Indian Lake Area Chamber of Commerce, told ABC 6 news.
“It’s pure devastation,” she said. “I have never seen anything like this in my entire life. “Our Lakeview municipal building is demolished. Our laundromat is gone. The old plastics building is just completely demolished. Downtown, it’s bad.”
The tornado touched down near the southern end of Indian Lake, impacting the villages of Lakeview and Russells Point, said Sheri Timmers, a spokesperson for Logan County. It also tore through Lakeside RV Park. The storm hit after 8 p.m.
A few people were confirmed injured, Timmers said, but their conditions were not immediately available. A shelter has been opened for anyone displaced.
Multiple buildings in the Indian Lake area were damaged, Timmers said, but the full extent of the destruction was still being assessed. Whether anyone was missing in the aftermath, was not immediately known.
“They’re right now doing some searching,” she said.
The Ohio governor’s office said they did not have any information about fatalities in the state.
The National Weather Service’s Storm Prediction Center also received a report of a tornado touching down near Coldwater, damaging a structure off Skeels Road. Hail was reported near Rockford, causing minor damage to homes.
The EMA in Auglaize County reported seeing a tornado on the ground north of U.S. 33 near the Auglaize/Mercer county line.
In Hancock County, law enforcement observed a tornado at state Route 37 and township Road 168. They also reported significant damage to roofs of homes and partially collapsed barns near township Road 29 near Jenera.
Hail also was reported in Putnam County near Ottoville and in Shelby County near Jackson Center.
In Van Wert County, heavy winds were attributed to roof damage to a home in Wren. Strong winds were also attributed to a semi truck blown over and several road signs downed near Columbus Grove in Putnam County.
Authorities in Indiana also said they were working to confirm reports of fatalities from a tornado that was part of storm system that also unleashed suspected twisters in parts of Ohio and Kentucky on Thursday, damaging homes and businesses.
Storm damage in Indiana was reported in the east central city of Winchester, according to Indiana State Police, who said they were working to confirm the deaths that had been reported to them.
State officials have called on Indiana Task Force One to help with search efforts in Winchester, according to a post by the rescue team on X. The team is one of 28 Department of Homeland Security and Federal Emergency Management Agency-sponsored Urban Search and Rescue teams in the United States.
“Our thoughts are with all those affected by the severe weather,” the post read.
