TOLEDO, Ohio — Severe thunderstorms brought hail and several reported tornadoes to portions of northwest Ohio Thursday evening, causing widespread power outages through the region.
One reported tornado in Toledo's Point Place neighborhood caused severe damage, including downed trees and serious roof damage.
The National Weather Service issued tornado warnings for the northeast portion of Lucas County, Monroe County, Erie County, Ottawa County, Sandusky County, Seneca County and Huron County as the storms blew through the region beginning around 6 p.m..
WTOL 11 Chief Meteorologist Chris Vickers said a likely tornado struck Point Place. Other reports of tornadoes on the ground came from Oak Harbor, near Fremont and near Norwalk.
"We fully expect we're going to confirm tornadoes tonight, folks," Vickers said. "We've had several instances this evening."
Authorities urged residents in the effected areas of north Toledo to stay in their homes even as the active storm moved out of the area. The storm downed power lines and may have caused gas leaks, officials said.
"The best thing people can do right now is if your residence is safe is stay home," said Toledo Fire and Rescue Department Spokesman Pvt. Sterling Rahe. "Don't come out. In something like this people want to come out and see, but right now we need to be able to get into these areas as best we can."
Toledo Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz said after the storm passed that crews were assessing the damage. The mayor said he had alerted Gov. Mike DeWine's office of the storm.
The mayor said he believes Thursday's tornado may be the first tornado to touch down in the city of Toledo since 1965.
Shortly after 7:30 p.m. Toledo Fire and Rescue Department asked Point Place residents to stay home. Emergency vehicles were not able to get through streets in the neighborhood, officials said.
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Utility companies reported outages around 9 p.m. affecting 9,000 customers in Lucas County, 1,500 customers in Erie County, 3,300 customers in Huron County, 2,100 customers in Ottawa County and 3,600 customers in Sandusky County. An updated list of active power outages can be found here.
"This is a super-cell thunderstorm that has been producing very large hail," Vickers said. "We've had reports of baseball-sized and softball-sized hail."
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