Hail and Damaging Winds in Indiana, July 21 to 22, 2008

A transformer was damaged as a result of thunderstorm winds.

A 80-year old tree was snapped off near its base by thunderstorm winds. The tree landed on top of a car, partly crushing it.

Many streets south of Elm Street were impassable because of downed trees. Firefighters, police, and street department employees worked through the night to clear streets and provide traffic control because of downed power lines. The local Fire Chief estimated that 100 to 200 trees had fallen from the storm. Several homes and cars were hit by trees.

Thunderstorm winds uprooted a large tree, which landed on top of a small single-story house near McDonald Lake near Clinton. The impact caused the house to split in half and a female occupant to hit the ceiling before she became entrapped by bedroom furniture. The tree itself landed about 6 feet away from the occupant. A newly purchased cell phone was within reach and she was able to summon help to extricate her from the now uninhabitable dwelling. The tree killed a kitten that she had rescued during June flooding. Another cat was injured. The fire department that has jurisdiction could not reach the house due to other fallen trees blocking the route, thus others had to called in.

Thunderstorm winds blew down a billboard on the northeast corner of Hazel Bluff Road and State Road 63. One side of the sign was torn off and blown to the south side of the roadway. A semi-truck was blown over a few hundred feet north of the intersection. No injury resulted. Driving the city streets in the southern half of Clinton, fallen trees could be seen on nearly every street. A large tree blocked South Third street near Higgins street and another could be seen blocking Ninth street between Blackman and Elm streets. The tree on Ninth had power lines entangled in it. A tree blocked off the intersection of 12th and Blackman streets, cutting off access for residents who live in the 1200 block of Blackman.

Tree limbs and utility lines were blown down by thunderstorm winds.

Tree limbs and utility lines were blown down by thunderstorm winds.

Trees were blown down by thunderstorm winds.

A lightning strike caused significant damage to most of the second floor of a large home while water damage was throughout the home. Time of occurrence and damage cost are rough estimates.

A firefighter who lives across the street saw sparks fly from the roof of a home and notified the owners. Internal damage to the house was largely from firefighters who fought flames from within. The cost of damage is a rough estimate.

Thunderstorm winds blew down a large tree onto a Toyota Corolla on 16th Street near Sixth Avenue, collapsing the roof and smashing windows. The hardest hit areas were north and east of Terre Haute. High winds broke utility poles and caused problems with some major transmission lines.

Fire from a lightning strike destroyed the roof of a home in the 8300 block of Bighorn Court. The home sustained heavy smoke and water damage throughout. Two other fires, on Key Court and Weathered Edge Drive, were relatively small and contained to the areas where they were started (no damage cost estimates available).

Thunderstorm winds blew trees down.

Trees were blown down by thunderstorm winds at 300 North, 600 West.

Numerous trees were blown down by thunderstorm winds.

A high voltage power pole was snapped off.

A tree was uprooted by thunderstorm winds.

A large tree was uprooted by thunderstorm winds.

Fallen trees blocked traffic at times on United States Highway 40, State Road 59, Interstate 70, along with many other areas. There was a lot of wind damage in the northern area near the Parke county line. In some cases, like at the intersection of Georgia and Alabama streets and on Kennedy Crossing Road, Brazil, trees fell onto residents' homes.

Thunderstorm winds blew down a tree onto United States Highway 231, fully blocking the road. Nearby, Shortcut Road was said to have been almost impassible right after the storm.

Trees and/or tree limbs were blown down by thunderstorm winds in town.

A propane company lost a structure to destructive thunderstorm winds. Tree limbs and leaves blanketed the city streets.

The area along Washington Street and Bloomington Street saw a lot of tree and utility line damage from thunderstorm winds. Witnesses at the Putnam County Fairgrounds said several chickens were killed as a result of the storm.

These thunderstorm winds were encountered in Plainfield and on Six Points Road.

Trees and/or tree limbs were blown down by thunderstorm winds.

A one-foot diameter tree was blown down by thunderstorm winds at County Road 200 West and United States Highway 40.

A fallen tree, resultant of thunderstorm winds, blocked Baldwin Street in Bargersville. Elsewhere, a tree blocked the north-bound lane of State Road 135 in the Center Grove area.

A 9-inch diameter tree limb was blown down by thunderstorm winds.

Hail hit the Bloomington area around 12:30 AM EST, ranging from 1/2-inch in diameter to almost 2 inches. Two waves of hail hit with about one half hour in between episodes. One gentleman had over 100 dents on the top of his car, causing an estimated $1,400 in damage, while his wife had 60+ dents at an estimated repair cost of $1,200.

Thunderstorm winds knocked trees into roads, houses, and utility lines. Power lines fell into a tree along Maple Lane where they started sparking before slipping onto a fence. A power surge resulted, shorting out five power boxes outside of homes along the lane. All of the homes were filled with smoke before firefighters got the situation under control. Each box required a technician to make repairs, and the damage should run between $200 and $800 per home. Elsewhere, trees crashed onto a vehicle on Adams Street in Franklin. Fallen trees blocked Houghham Street in Franklin and North County Road 800 East outside of Franklin, where a utility pole caught on fire.

Trees were blown down by thunderstorm winds.

Trees, being blown down by thunderstorm winds, were responsible for downed power and phone lines. Downed trees also closed a number of city streets. One of the most extensively damaged areas was in the 1000 block of North Harrison Street. Multiple trees were downed, with one falling on a residence. The tree caused extensive damage to the rear of the single-story residence. Two blocks north, a number of downed trees forced the closure of Park Boulevard from 13th Street to Main Street. The 500 and 600 blocks of Harrison Street were reduced to a single lane and eventually closed to any traffic. An 80-foot pine tree was uprooted in the 1200 block of Washington Street, struck a transformer and resulted in a 12-hour power outage in the area.

A lightning strike caused the phone system to be rendered inoperable at the Rushville police department and knocked out radio communications at the dispatch center.

Lightning was blamed as the cause of a fire that destroyed an Elizabethtown house. The fire was discovered by a passer-by at about 4:39 AM EST, according to the fire department. The department estimated the fire caused at least $350,000 in damage to the house and contents. The fire was believed to have been burning for some time before it was discovered as evidenced by the entire front of the house, and halfway inside, being engulfed in flames. The owners were at work at the time of occurrence.

Thunderstorm winds tore down a large tree branch, blew down a white Oak tree that was estimated to be 300 years old, and fell another tree onto a roadway near the intersection of Wilder and Washington Streets.

A Locust tree fell on utility lines, pulling the connected utility pole to an angle over southern County Road 180 East in Southeast Decatur county.