Severe storms are poised to unleash giant hail, tornadoes, and severe wind gusts across the Plains and Midwest on Tuesday afternoon and evening, just a day after the regions endured significant damage.
Authorities in Kansas reported several minor injuries following Monday's storms.
Three individuals sustained minor injuries in rural Franklin County, approximately 50 miles southwest of Kansas City, according to the sheriff’s office.
In Ottawa, officials noted structural damage but no fatalities or injuries. A National Weather Service survey team is scheduled to assess the Ottawa area on Tuesday to determine if a tornado touched down there, confirmed Chelsea Picha, a meteorologist with the weather service’s Topeka office.
Neighboring Miami County saw two people with minor injuries, several homes destroyed, and recreational vehicles and campers overturned, the sheriff’s office stated. Power lines in Hillsdale were de-energized until cleanup could be safely completed.
Further north, three tornadoes struck southern Minnesota, causing damage to farms, according to Jake Beitlich, a meteorologist in the Twin Cities office. Reports also indicated baseball-sized hail, which damaged vehicles in the area.
A tornado also touched down near Gilman, a village of about 380 people in northwestern Wisconsin, though damage was minor, said Jeff Boyne, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service’s La Crosse office. The weather service is still working to determine the tornado’s rating. Storms also peeled the roof off a manufactured home in Steuben, a village of about 120 people in southwestern Wisconsin, with no injuries reported in the state.
More than 25,000 customers in Wisconsin were without power on Tuesday morning, leading to the closure of several schools around the Madison area.
Forecasters have also warned of significant river and small stream flooding expected through the end of the week in the Upper Great Lakes, with the heaviest rainfall anticipated overnight into Wednesday, bringing scattered flash flooding.
In Michigan, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer declared a state of emergency last Friday for the Cheboygan Lock and Dam Complex, as record snowfall in March and recent rains have elevated water levels. Additional pumps were deployed Monday to help push water toward Lake Huron. As of Tuesday morning, water levels were 7.68 inches below the top of the structure.
