By Evan Rosen
New York Daily News
PORTAGE, Mich. — A severe tornado in Portage, Mich., led to a FedEx facility collapsing Tuesday night, trapping about 50 people inside, according to officials.
They said downed wires in the building must be removed before first responders can enter and rescue the people trapped inside, MLive.com reported.
It was not immediately clear whether the incident resulted in major injuries.
Footage shared on social media showed significant damage done to the facade of the building, with large sections appearing to have been destroyed by the winds. Trees along the road near the facility were also shown strewn about the ground.
Lot of damage from the tornado in Kalamazoo and Portage. FedEx building looks bad! pic.twitter.com/iZ7N1k2vZs
— Jim Morrison (@JimMorrison74) May 7, 2024
The tornado was one of several witnessed in the Midwest on Tuesday, as a system of deadly winds in Oklahoma traveled east overnight.
Earlier in the day, the National Weather Service issued a tornado emergency for Michigan.
The larger Portage community was heavily affected by the storm, with multiple injuries and damage reported at a mobile park in the area.
Residents impacted by the tornado were relocating to a local senior center and church, officials said. Injuries and damage were also reported in nearby Kalamazoo, where roughly 26,000 customers were without power as of 9:39 p.m., according to the Consumers Energy outage map.
Tornado watches have been extended until 11 p.m. in the region, and Portage Mayor Patricia Randall issued an emergency declaration on Tuesday evening to obtain resources from the federal and state governments.
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