Many tornadoes were reported to have caused destruction in the Midwest on Friday.They led to a building collapsing with numerous people inside and the destruction and damage of at least 150 homes in Omaha.
Dr. Lindsay Huse, the health director of Douglas County Health Department, stated that there were no fatalities reported and fewer than twenty-four people were treated at hospitals in the Omaha area.
“Miraculous’ she said, stressing that none of the city’s injuries were serious. The neighboring communities each reported a few injuries.
The damage from the tornado began on Friday afternoon close to Lincoln, Nebraska. A building in Lancaster County was struck, leading it to collapse with 70 individuals inside. Multiple individuals were trapped, but all were rescued, and the three injuries were reported as not life-threatening according to authorities.
One or possibly two tornadoes then spent around an hour creeping toward Omaha, leaving behind damage consistent with an EF3 twister, with winds of 135 to 165 mph, said Chris Franks, a meteorologist in the National Weather Service’s Omaha office.
In the end, the tornado hit the Elkhorn neighborhood in western Omaha, which is a city with a population of 485,000 people and a metropolitan-area population of approximately 1 million.
“We barely made it to the basement and then we heard the destruction going on upstairs,” said James Stennis, who moved to the Elkhorn neighborhood about a year ago. “Wow!”
Firefighters worked late into the evening to ensure that no one was trapped. On Saturday morning, the noise of chainsaws could be heard in the area. Piles of lumber from the damaged homes were scattered around. The fences were knocked down, and the trees looked bare, with most of their branches gone.
Staci Roe surveyed the damage to what was supposed to be her “forever home,” which was not even two years old. At the time of the tornado, they were at the airport to pick up a friend who was planning to stay overnight.
“There was no home to come to,” she said, describing “utter dread’ when she saw it for the first time.
The power outages reached a peak of 10,000, but they had decreased to 4,300 by the morning.
Nebraska Governor Jim Pillen and Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds spent Saturday inspecting the damage and organizing help for the affected communities. Formal assessments of the damage are still in progress, and the states intend to request assistance from the federal government.
“It is an extraordinary miracle that we’ve had this kind of cell come through and no casualties, no loss of life,” Pillen marveled at a news conference.
Douglas County Sheriff Aaron Hanson pleaded with onlookers to remain at home. He mentioned that he and Pillen were caught in several traffic jams while observing the wreckage.
“And that’s because in large part there’s a lot of looky-loos who are very curious,” he said. Hanson mentioned that law enforcement will be present in large numbers to protect the damaged property.
A second tornado passed over Eppley Airfield located on the eastern edge of Omaha. It destroyed four hangar buildings that housed 32 privately owned planes. Fortunately, no injuries were reported, and the passenger terminal remained unaffected. The airport has now reopened for operations. However, access to areas utilized by noncommercial pilots is restricted to allow the crew to clean up the aftermath, as stated in a news release by the airfield.
Franks estimated that this tornado was a slightly less powerful EF2, with the ability to produce winds ranging from 111 to 135 miles per hour.
“Strong tornadoes, rare tornadoes,” he called the duo of twisters that hit the city.
The storm moved into Iowa after reaching the airport and targeted the small town of Minden.
Between forty to fifty houses were entirely demolished. Two injuries were reported but none were life-threatening, said Jeff Theulen, chief deputy of the Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office, at a late Friday briefing.
“It’s heartbreaking to see these people who have lost houses, cars, essentially their life until they have to rebuild it,” he said, urging people to stay away because of downed power lines.
At the Minden United Church of Christ, which survived the storm and has now become a central point for assistance and support, there were plans to use 4-wheel-drive vehicles to deliver meals to those in need in the devastated areas of the town, according to Pastor Eric Biehl.
“A lot of people are just kind of in shock,” Biehl said. “It’s all overwhelming now.”
Tammy Pavich, who stores equipment on the west edge of town, said she “kind of breathed a sigh of relief’ after the first round of tornadoes moved through Omaha. Then, she recalled, the storm “hit Minden dead-on.”
Todd Lehan, a lifelong resident of the town, said he took shelter in a windowless basement. “It sounded like a vacuum cleaner on top of your house,” he recalled.
A suspected tornado damaged nearly 20 homes and injured one person just to the west of the Iowa town of Pleasant Hill.
The damage was giving Nebraska football fans who were going to the spring game a hard time.
“Be prepared for heavy traffic, buckle up and put the phone down,” warned the Nebraska Department of Transportation.
The National Weather Service was assessing the damage while the forecast for Saturday looked grim. Tornado watches were issued for areas in Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, and Iowa. There was also a possibility of large hail. Due to the forecasts, some schools decided to cancel proms.
“Tornadoes, perhaps significant tornadoes,” were possible Saturday afternoon and evening, said weather service meteorologist Bruce Thoren in Norman, Oklahoma.