Four dead as 75mph gales down trees and tear roofs off buildings during storm

25 August 2023 , 13:59

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Emergency services were busy with fallen trees, power lines, and car crashes (Image: AP)

At least four people have died as a result of a devastating storm in Michigan, with trees collapsing and roofs being torn off by wind speeds up to 75mph.

Hundreds of thousands of people have also been left without power due to the storm, which took place on Thursday night in Eastern Time. The damage may be a result of two tornadoes, the National Weather Service confirmed on Friday.

Two young children and a woman died in a crash in the rain, a Kent County Sheriff’s office spokesperson confirmed. Sergeant Eric Brunner said: “There were two vehicles travelling toward each other. One hydroplaned on water and it was occupied by four people.” Two others were injured in the crash, Sgt Brunner confirmed.

The Ingham County Sheriff’s office said on Friday that over 25 vehicles were severely damaged on the Interstate 96. There was one confirmed fatality and multiple severe injuries in the area, which reported a possible tornado.

Some buildings were torn apart by the storm (AP)

Elsewhere, a roof collapsed and shingles were ripped off an adult foster care facility near Williamston, also in Ingham County. Caretaker James Gale said to WXYZ-TV: “Once I felt that sucking, I could just feel the power of it, and I could feel it all shaking, I could feel the roof shaking and coming apart.” A woman was taken to hospital after her ceiling fell in.

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Trees were uprooted, forcing the closure of many roads due to fallen trees and power lines. National Weather Service officials are today (August 25) in the field conducting damage surveys in both Kent and Ingham County. Fallen power lines left over 440,000 in Michigan and 210,000 in Ohio without any power as of 9:56am on Friday (1:56pm UK time), according to a measuring power outages.

Power lines dropped all over the county (AP)

Before the storm, areas in southeast Michigan saw over 5 inches of rain after a downpour on Wednesday leaving some streets in Detroit flooded, officials said. This included tunnels to the Detroit Metropolitan airport, which was reopened on Thursday afternoon.

But the region was not given a rest as storms stirred up in the western part of the state that afternoon. The State Emergency Operations Centre was activated, supporting affected communities with the flooding impact.

This tree snapped in two - the top half can be seen lying on the floor to the right (AP)

Western areas of the US have been busy fighting Tropical Storm Hilary, while the central US has suffered deadly heat waves. Hawaii and Washington have seen emergency crews fighting colossal wildfires.

Scientists say extensive studies would be required to directly link these weather events to , but more intense and frequent extreme weather is ultimately a product of climate change.

Alex Croft