Whiteland, Indiana, likely hit by EF2 tornado, NWS says after surveying damage
The town of Whiteland in Johnson County took a “direct hit” from a suspected tornado last night as severe weather swept through most of the state.
The National Weather Service said Saturday evening its teams have preliminarily determined the community was hit by an EF2 tornado with peak winds of 135 mph. According to Whiteland police, the southern part of the town, which is about 20 miles south of Indianapolis, took a “direct hit” around 11:30 p.m., knocking down power lines and blocking roadways with debris.
Several houses and warehouses appear to have been destroyed or received significant damage, according to the Daily Journal. Destruction was also seen in parts of Franklin.
Whiteland Fire Chief Eric Funkhauser told the Daily Journal that the winds destroyed at least 10 to 20 homes and left about 20 people in a shelter.
Whiteland police said no fatalities were found during their first sweep of the area but that a second sweep was being conducted by the Red Cross.
Storm coverage: Indiana, Midwest hit by severe storms. Here's what we know.
Central Indiana was under a wind advisory until 6 p.m. Saturday with gusts near 50 mph possible and showers possible throughout the day, according to the National Weather Service.
AES Indiana is reporting as of Saturday morning a little over 4,000 customers are currently without power and that they were dealing with many poles and wires down across their service area.
There were at least 40 reports of tornadoes Friday Arkansas, Iowa, Tennessee, Illinois, Wisconsin and Mississippi, weather.com reported. And more than 28 million people were under a tornado watch at one point Friday, the National Weather Service said, which declared a level 5 "high risk" outlook for severe storms in some areas.
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This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Whiteland, Indiana, likely hit by EF2 tornado, weather service says
