DETROIT, July 20 (UPI) -- The powerful winds that slammed Ursuline College in Ohio Saturday were confirmed to be an EF-1 tornado by the National Weather Service.
The twister's 110-mph winds wiped out the college's gymnasium, damaged at least three other buildings and toppled trees about 3:30 a.m. EDT, The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer reported.
"We feel blessed that no one was killed, no one was hurt," Sister Diana Stano, president of the Catholic women's school in Pepper Pike, told the newspaper Saturday afternoon.
WJW-TV, Cleveland, reported the tornado also hit nearby Lyndale, where knocked down numerous trees, including one that crashed into the home of Amanda Barrett and her family.
She said the winds were howling so she moved her children from their bedrooms.
"About 30 seconds later, we saw lightning, heard thunder and heard the tree crash on the house," she said.
"It hit our addition, our back room. It hit my daughter's room upstairs and broke the foundation. The wall is all cracked all around. It shattered a nightlight in my son's room."
More than 90,000 DTE Energy customers were still without power in southeastern Michigan Saturday evening, the day after severe storms packing 60 mph winds struck the region and left 145,000 customers in the dark, the Detroit Free Press reported.
Storms driven by 70 mph winds struck Las Vegas Friday evening, causing street flooding and power outages, the Los Angeles Times reported.
The National Weather Service declared a flash flood warning for Las Vegas and surrounding areas for Sunday afternoon through Monday evening, the newspaper said.
Severe weather also hammered the Buffalo, N.Y., area Friday night, taking out Robert Perry's barn, WIVB-TV, reported.
"When that storm come up, the wind come up, I looked outside and heard a big 'boom.' Come outside, and the barn was gone," he told the Buffalo TV station. "I've got five antique tractors there that I've lost all five of."
Wendelville, N.Y., Volunteer Fire Chief Shawn Christman said firefighters rescued a number of people from their homes.
"Our biggest issue last night, one of the high-tension lines also blew a hole in the gas main which then was leaking into the sewer system, which actually was ignited by the high-tension lines," he said.
AccuWeather.com said eastern states and the Midwest may see frequent downpours and potential flash flooding next week.
"While there are no specific tropical systems in the Atlantic Basin at this time, August is a period in the season when there is an uptick in the number of tropical storms and hurricanes," AccuWeather meteorologist Dan Kottlowski said.
