5/8/24 - Tornadoes Touchdown In Southern Michigan

A "State of Emergency" was declared for Kalamazoo, St. Joesph, Branch and Cass counties due to tornado damage.

-The National Weather Service will be in Southeast Michigan today to evaluate the storms that brough tornadoes Tuesday night.

The Portage area in Kalamazoo County and Centreville in St. Joseph County were hit especially hard.  

Buildings were destroyed, damaged power and gas lines were a concern, and large hail did damage to vehicles.  Many are not able to stay in their homes due to the significant damage.

Many roads were blocked due to debris.

There are still several thousand without power and crews hope that most will be restored by later today.  Earlier this morning there were around 18,000 in Kalamazoo County that had no power.

Authorities are telling residents to stay off the roads as they continue to evaluate the damage, clean up debris and make repairs.

Significant damage was done to a FedEx facility not far from the airport and damage was done to strip malls and other businesses and homes, especially in the Pavilion Estates mobile home park. 

The Air Zoo Aerospace and Science Center in Portage will be closed Wednesday after storms knocked out power. The museum is also has water damage.

The Red Cross has opened two shelters in Portage: First Assembly of God Church on Oakland Drive and Radiant Church on Romence Road. 

Those needing assistance can contact the Red Cross, 9-1-1 for emergencies, and for non-emergencies 2-1-1.

It could be another tough day across the Midwest today as more storms are predicted.  Michigan is not included in that forecast.