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Tuesday, April 7
The Indiana Daily Student

Online only: Tornadoes and hail rake four states, injuring dozens

Indianapolis concert canceled as possible tornado hits Indianapolis

In Indianapolis, the storm hit with heavy wind and rain that shook downtown office towers as thousands of fans departed a free John Mellencamp concert.\nWeather service radar tracked a powerful thunderstorm with a possible tornado through downtown Indianapolis, weather service meteorologist John Ogren said, but officials would not be able to confirm whether the storm was a tornado until they inspect damage on Monday. \nEarlier the line of storms swept through central and southern Indiana, causing widespread damage. There were no immediate reports of injuries but officials were just beginning to piece together the details Sunday night, Ogren said. \n"We've got such a pile (of damage reports) I've really not had a chance to see everything," he said. \nUtility crews were working late Sunday night to some 57,000 Cinergy customers across Indiana, said spokeswoman Angeline Protogere. \nWeather service personnel took shelter for about 10 minutes as high winds kicked up debris against the agency's building at the Indianapolis airport, and the downtown tower housing the Indianapolis bureau of The Associated Press shook badly enough to knock a clock off the wall.\nSevere storms swept across Tennessee, Missouri and Illinois, killing at least 11 people, officials said.\nLocal emergency officials reported eight deaths in west Tennessee's Dyer County, and the number of fatalities could rise, said Kurt Pickering, spokesman for the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency. Details on the deaths weren't immediately available.\nIn Missouri, strong winds were blamed for the deaths of at least two people. A 42-year-old man was killed when straight-line winds knocked over his mobile home near Circle City, Stoddard County Sheriff Carl Hefner said.\nAnother man was killed when a tree fell on him as he walked along a trail in Castlewood State Park near Ballwin in St. Louis County, a spokeswoman for St. Louis County police told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.\nIn Illinois, a man was killed when a clothing store in Fairview Heights, east of St. Louis, collapsed in high winds, police Capt. Nick Gailius said.\nEmergency crews were searching the rubble for any additional victims, their progress slowed by a gas leak, Gailius said. Others were injured in the collapse, he said.\nThe National Weather Service reported that tornadoes were spotted in five counties in Tennessee's northwest corner, and officials said the storms caused extensive damage to buildings.\nIn Tennessee, the National Weather Service reported that tornadoes were spotted in five counties in Tennessee's northwest corner, and officials said the storms caused extensive damage to buildings.

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