KENT COUNTY, Mich. — Thursday afternoon's storms took many by surprise in Northern Kent County, including those at Wabasis Lake campground. Campers said the storm came out of nowhere and that they had to act quickly when they got the alert.
"We had tornado come through, and there's a lot of damage to tents and stuff. The phone started going off, and we sat there for a second and started getting things ready for the storm," said camper Becker Buckingham.
Campers at Wabasis Lake campground in Northern Kent County were forced to take cover in the bathroom when they were alerted of a tornado warning with storms in their area. The storm completely ripped the awning off one campers R-V.
"We're sitting underneath the awning having a beer, and all of a sudden the awning went and we ran down to the bathrooms. I grabbed an extra beer, and we just had it down, and that was it. We had about 15-20 people in the bathroom with us," said camper Rick Pupel.
A few trees also fell down around the campground due to the strong wind and one appeared to have been struck by lightning.
"There was a couple limbs and snapped off trees, a lot of commotion going on," said Buckingham.
The rain came down in sheets, flooding some basements and backyards in Northern Kent County. One camper said he could see it coming from far away.
"I mean, it was coming down so hard, we ran to our truck. Even from the awning to the truck, we got soaked and hit the bathroom, and there's like a river coming through right by the bathroom door," said Pupel.
No one was hurt at the campground Thursday afternoon. As campers put their sites back together, they hope to continue to enjoy their time outside.
"You know, just having a good time," said Pupel.
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