Teams from the National Weather Service will visit multiple Indiana counties Monday to survey damage from severe storms and tornadoes.
The dangerous weather swept through central Indiana Sunday afternoon and evening, leading to tornado and severe thunderstorm warnings across the area.
NWS later confirmed four tornados occurred in Indiana as a result of Sunday’s storms: one in Johnson County, two in Martin County and another in southwest Monroe County.
The Monroe County tornado and the northern of the two tornadoes in Martin County have been classified as EF1, while the tornadoes in Johnson County and southern Martin County are EF2.
The NWS survey teams were in Johnson County Monday. They’ll also visit Daviess, Martin and Monroe counties to assess damage and determine the track and severity of tornadoes that spawned during Sunday’s storms.
Here’s what we know about the severe weather outbreak.
Max Lewis, Brian Wilkes, Chris Wright, Kailey Schuyler and Eric Graves all contributed to this report.
Johnson County
The National Weather Service has confirmed that the Johnson County tornado was an EF2 that hit an estimated wind peak of 115 miles per hour that had a path length of over 5 miles.
Officials in Johnson County put a curfew in place from 9 p.m. Sunday through 6 a.m. Monday after storms cut a swath of damage through the Center Grove area.
Damage was located across a three-mile stretch in the northern part of the county, according to the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office. Officials said 75 homes suffered moderate to severe damage.
The National Weather Service received multiple reports of large hail during the storm.
Several roads were closed in the area, according to the sheriff’s office:
- Travis Road is closed between Mullinix Road to Morgantown Road
- Morgantown Road from Mullinix Road to Whiteland Road
- Stones Crossing Road from State Road 135 to Saddle Club Road
- Saddle Club Road from Stones Crossing Road to Smokey Row Road
Emergency officials are asking people to stay away from the area, even after the curfew expires, due to downed power lines and storm debris. Doing so will allow emergency workers to do their jobs safely.
Some homes could be without power for at least 48 hours, officials warned. The American Red Cross set up a shelter at Greenwood Middle School on Averitt Road.
The damage comes months after the town of Whiteland took a “direct hit” during severe weather in early April.
Johnson County homeowner Randell Lee lost his home, which he and his family had lived in since 1978, in the tornado. Now, Lee said he has just been looking around to see what is still salvageable.
“Some of the stuff in there is going to be salvageable,” Lee said. “But I spend about 60% of my time in the garage and working on stuff so now I don’t know what I’m gonna do.”
Lee said he is now working with his insurance company to see what can be done.
As the sirens went off Sunday, several Johnson County residents came outside to look around, only to run back in when they saw a tornado forming in the distance.
“I was sitting out on my patio and listening to it rain and it sounded like someone was bowling up in the sky,” said Terry Pickett, who survived the tornado. “I ran in, jumped in my tub and put my hands over my head and said ‘oh my god, oh my god’ and then I heard the roof come off.”
Others, like Johnson County resident Jeanne Seal, said they are mentally calming down after the literal storm.
“Today we are kind of settling down,” Seal said. “I could just feel the vibrations of the door and everything and windows because a lot of windows broke. It was like a horror movie.”
Another survivor, Joe Pinnick, said the sound of the tornado was what stuck with him.
“[Like a] baseball bat on your windows,” Pinnick said. “Just coming through.”
Monroe County
The Monroe Fire Protection District confirmed a tornado touched down in the southwestern part of Monroe County during Sunday’s storms. On Monday, the National Weather Service confirmed the tornado as an EF1.
The tornado, NWS said, reached max wind speeds of 100 mph and had a max width of 100 yards. It had a path length of over 1.5 miles.
County officials said at least ten structures sustained damage from high winds. It included mostly homes and barns.
Officials with the Monroe Fire Protection District responded to multiple calls about storm damage in the areas of Rockport Road, Rockeast Road and Lee Phillips Road.
There were several reports of downed trees and power lines in the area, along with large hail.
No fatalities were reported by NWS in either the Johnson or Monroe County tornadoes.
Martin/Daviess/Dubois counties
At least one person died after severe weather swept through Martin County Sunday night.
Martin County EMA director Cameron Wolf said a tornado hit a home on Windom Road, killing one occupant and injuring another. Wolf said the storm “leveled” the home.
The residence is located in a primarily rural area surrounded by multiple trees. Many nearby roads were impassible.
On Monday, NWS confirmed that two tornadoes actually hit Martin County the day prior.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Clean-up efforts
Clean-up efforts were underway Monday in every county affected.
In Johnson County, crews were working furiously Monday night to clear debris, salvage homes and remove toppled trees. On Travis Road, multiple utility poles can be seen cracked and strewn about.
“There was glass and shingles and all the trees were just blown everywhere,” said survivor Sam Hendrick. “It was a lot worse than it is right now.”
Hendrick said he took shelter with his parents as the storm rolled through. Now, his front yard is littered with debris that includes a mailbox from down the street. Houses on either side of Hendrick’s had their roofs blown off and are now covered in tarps.
“The Kensington Grove neighborhood here along Travis Road was right in the path of the storm,” Hendrick said. “Some homes here are untouched while others are unlivable.”
When cleaning up after storms, the National Weather Service advises taking frequent breaks so as not to strain the body.
Furthermore, the Better Business Bureau has previously advised that scammers sometimes try to target storm damage victims. For information on what the BBB advises, click here.
Roofers also may attempt to target customers in local, storm-damaged areas following tornadoes. For more information on how to find a trusted roofer, click here.
