Tornadoes, high winds cause damage across region

Weather officials confirmed Thursday that two tornadoes touched down when severe storms passed through Wednesday uprooting trees, knocking out power and blanketing some areas with pea-sized hail.

RELATED: Major storm damage reported in Enon, Clark County

The National Weather Service conducted surveys in Greene and Clark counties Thursday and said two EF0 tornadoes touched down in Clark County minutes apart.

The first touched down west and north of Enon at 6:51 p.m. The NWS said the second tornado was at 6:58 p.m. six miles west of Springfield.

Fairborn, less than 10 miles away from Enon, also reported significant wind damage.

No one was injured or killed in the storm, according to the NWS.

Tornadic winds tore through the area, levelling a local barn on Dayton Springfield Road south west of Enon and sending debris into an adjacent home.

Michelle Legge, who was at home when the storm hit, said she had a feeling a tornado was coming, so she tried to get her and her child to safety.

"I looked out of the window and seen a really big cloud coming out of the sky. One of my windows busted out so me and my daughter went in the bathroom," Legge said. Legge and her daughter were not injured.

According to the NWS, the tornado started at 6:51 p.m., and reached an estimated wind speed of 75-80 mph and traveled about 150 yards before unravelling in less than one minute.

Julie Reed of the NWS said the storm damage in the area was serious and something that the Miami Valley has seen.

"Everyone remembers the storm of 2012 or the remnants of Hurricane Ike in 2008. This is on par with that type of damage," Reed said.

In 2012, a wind storm caused over $845,000 worth of damage in Ohio while 2008’s Hurricane Ike’s leftover winds produced 70-80 mph winds.

RELATED: Storm damages Montgomery County Fairgrounds grandstand

At the Montgomery County Fairgrounds, a large piece of the historic grandstand’s south facade appeared to be torn from the structure on South Main Street and a barn at the fairgrounds site was destroyed in the storm.

Fairgrounds Executive Director Greg Wallace said an assessment of total damages to the fairgrounds has not been completed.

Montgomery County Job & Family Services spokesperson Kevin LaVoie said the center was operating on a limited basis Thursday, due to a large antennae falling from the roof.

“The severe weather we had last night knocked over an antennae on our roof. Unfortunately it was directly on top of our server room,” LaVoie said.

RELATED: Tree falls, damages Moraine home during Wednesday’s severe storms

LaVoie said the fallen antennae punctured a hole in the roof, which led to rain falling in the room. Safety features in the room shut down servers automatically whenever water is detected.

Cost estimates on how much damage the fallen antennae caused were unknown, LaVoie said.

The Montgomery County Office of Emergency Management said none of their jurisdictions requested post-storm assistance.

“A lot of times jurisdictions handle it on their own, but if it reaches a level where they need additional resources we would coordinate getting that for them. But we’re always there in case they need something,” Cathy Petersen, county spokesperson said.

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