LAKEVIEW, Ohio — Blaine Schmidt searched through the broken glass and splintered wood in his Ohio home on Friday, saving a guitar and a pack of diapers.
A tornado tore through the central U.S., killing three people and injuring many others, including ripping apart furniture in Schmidt's home and completely destroying the neighboring house.
Schmidt said he felt fortunate to be alive after taking cover in a bathtub with his roommate, using a shower curtain as protection from flying glass.
Severe storms on Thursday night caused a lot of damage in Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, and Arkansas, resulting in about 40 injuries and numerous homes being damaged in Indiana. Tornadoes also occurred in Illinois and Missouri.
The Indian Lake area in Ohio's Logan County was particularly affected, with three deaths reported, according to Sheriff Randy Dodds.
The villages of Russells Point and Lakeview, where Schmidt lives, experienced a lot of destruction. Many cottages owned by people who come for fishing and boating were damaged.
Search crews and cadaver dogs did not find any more victims on Friday after entering neighborhoods that had been blocked by gas leaks and fallen trees overnight, Dodds said.
The sheriff mentioned his surprise that there were only three deaths given the extent of the damage.
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, who surveyed the damage and met with residents, remarked that it was fortunate the storm did not occur on a summer weekend.
Sandy Smith and her family sought shelter in the laundry room of their Lakeview home after hearing the storm sirens. Shortly after, they heard debris hitting the house, with her husband witnessing the garage being blown away.
She went upstairs to rescue their cat, which was trapped under a bookshelf. As soon as she returned downstairs, the roof collapsed.
Several businesses including a campground, an RV park, and a laundromat suffered damage. The storm caused fires in certain areas and brought down power lines into home windows, according to Amber Fagan, president of the local chamber of commerce.
Around 25 people received treatment for mostly broken bones and internal injuries at the nearest hospital in Bellefontaine, according to Laura Miller, a spokesperson for Mary Rutan Hospital.
Several Lakeview residents interviewed by The Associated Press stated that they heard tornado sirens 10 minutes before the storm hit, after the sirens had gone off earlier.
Weather officials were evaluating the damage and confirming the tornadoes, with at least five touching down in Ohio alone.
In Indiana, a tornado injured 38 people in Winchester, where the mayor reported that around 130 homes and a Taco Bell restaurant had been damaged or destroyed. Three people were in critical condition, but authorities stated that their injuries were not life-threatening.
Residents, who said they received ample warning to seek shelter, cleared tree branches and sheet metal from their yards. Shingles were scattered across streets and fields in the town northeast of Indianapolis.
Carey Todd, 55, described the tornado as looking like a bunch of black birds.
Opposite a church that was destroyed, a hymnal was blown open to No. 118, “Shelter in Time of Storm.”
Mayor Bob McCoy said he and his wife crouched in a closet.
“I’ve never heard that sound before; I don’t want to hear it again,” McCoy said.
West of Winchester, officials said approximately half the buildings in the town of Selma, with a population of 750, might have been damaged. Only minor injuries were reported, emergency officials said in a news release.
Gov. Eric Holcomb praised first responders in Indiana, saying: “By the grace of God, everyone has lived through it all.”
Storms also caused damage to houses and trailers in the Ohio River communities of Hanover and Lamb in Indiana.
In Milton, Kentucky, two people were injured when their car was hit by debris from a tornado that damaged as many as 100 homes and businesses, said Trimble County Emergency Management Director Andrew Stark.
In Arkansas, a tornado hit the retirement community of Hot Springs Village, southwest of Little Rock, but there were no reports of fatalities or injuries, according to National Weather Service meteorologist Erik Green.
