More than 140,000 customers lost power in Michigan on Wednesday as severe thunderstorms continued to batter the state.
Some 108,000 DTE Energy customers were without power by 5:40 p.m. Wednesday, with Consumers Energy noting a further 32,000 outages across southern Michigan, the New York Post reported. Reports of severe thunderstorms, downpours and gale-force winds have been issued throughout the week, with countless videos and images shared on social media showing the scale of the destruction.
The National Weather Service asked Twitter users to start sharing their reports of damage from the storm, particularly in places like Hart, Saugatuck, Holland and Ludington. The highest rainfall noted by the agency was a little over three inches in Muskegon.
Crazy hail storm in Michigan yesterday, some places the hail was larger than soft balls, and then a tornado like 20 minutes from my house. pic.twitter.com/C6hyUKzhzJ
— Paige (@Paaiiggeee_) July 22, 2023
“Hail was larger than softballs,” one person shared on Twitter, adding that what appeared to be a tornado then ripped through the residential area. A series of trains were derailed throughout the week in Michigan, as well as in parts of Oklahoma, but it’s unclear whether these were caused by the storm or something else. (RELATED: Hillary Clinton Blames ‘MAGA Republicans’ For Hot Weather In July)
The storms drifted from west-to-east, hitting Detroit and Ann Arbor, with parts of Ohio also in the path, another user said, sharing a graphic of the incoming deluge. More severe thunderstorms and flash flooding are forecast throughout the rest of the week.