Winter storms bring flooding and ‘thunder ice’ in several US states
Advertisement
Read this article for free:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Digital Subscription
One year of digital access for only $205*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*First annual payment billed as $205.00 + GST for one year. This annual subscription will automatically renew at $233.00 + GST every 52 weeks (10% off the regular annual price of $259.35). Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional
$1 for the first 4 weeks*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*Your next Brandon Sun subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $17.95 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $24.95 plus GST every four weeks.
Read unlimited articles for free today:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 06/02/2025 (607 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — Storms spawned at least one brief tornado, sent creeks over their banks and caused flash flooding Thursday in portions of West Virginia and Kentucky, while a wintry mix coated trees and roads in ice and even dropped “thunder ice” in several states.
Residents and storm spotters in portions of Indiana, southern Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania reported the unusual mix of freezing rain accompanied by flashes of lightning in the unstable air.
“You ever seen that?” Brian Heffner of Spencerville, Ohio, said in a video he posted on Facebook. “I’ve never seen lightning and heard thunder during an ice storm. It’s cool.”
A long line of thunderstorms kept residents awake overnight with hours of heavy rains, flooding neighborhoods, triggering mudslides and rockslides, and causing accidents where water ponded on some interstate highways. Schools in numerous counties delayed classes or closed Thursday.
Multiple drivers had to be rescued after getting stranded in the floodwaters, authorities in West Virginia said. And the rescues weren’t limited to humans. The Kanawha-Charleston Humane Association asked the community to adopt or foster 15 dogs after a portion of its shelter began to get flooded.
Several inches of rain in Charleston prompted county officials to activate an emergency operations center. In Huntington, along the Ohio River, residents of some areas were told remain in their homes for several hours during flooding before the advisory was lifted Thursday afternoon. Much of West Virginia and portions of eastern Kentucky and southeastern Ohio remained under flood warnings by Thursday evening.
In south-central Kentucky, the National Weather Service confirmed a short-lived EF1 tornado with winds of up to 95 mph (150 kph) tore apart some roofs and scattered debris in Hart County, about an hour south of Louisville. No injuries were immediately reported.
Late Thursday, severe storms with possible tornadoes moved through eastern Tennessee. The Tennessee Highway Patrol said on social media that troopers were in Morgan County ensuring resident safety and assessing and helping with structure damage.
The Morgan County School District said on its website that schools would be closed Friday because of “significant damage from tornadoes in parts of our county.”
A storm coated trees and roads in ice in several mid-Atlantic states before warmer temperatures moved in by midday Thursday. Most areas avoided significant power outages that can accompany accumulating ice on trees and power lines.
Forecasts for several inches of snow prompted closures and delays for dozens of school systems in New England. In Maine, more than 200 schools and businesses were closed or shutting early. The Kennebunk area school district was one of many that chose to close fully rather than risk a messy commute for afternoon school buses.
“Road conditions are expected to rapidly deteriorate once the snow begins, potentially putting students and staff at risk if we were to implement an early release scenario,” said district superintendent Terri Cooper.
___
Associated Press writers Sarah Brumfield Cockeysville, Maryland, and Patrick Whittle in Scarborough, Maine, contributed to this report.
