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Confirmed EF-1 tornado ripped southern Michigan storage facility's roof clean off

The National Weather Service from Northern Indiana surveyed the damage in Colon, Michigan, and determined an EF-1 tornado was on the ground for nearly 3 miles.

COLON, Michigan — A community in southern Michigan is cleaning up after a confirmed tornado rolled through Colon Wednesday night. 

Just after 11 p.m. Wednesday, the National Weather Service in northern Indiana issued a tornado warning for Colon. 

Survey teams with the NWS confirmed an EF-1 tornado touched down near Colon and was on the ground for about five minutes. The tornado's path spanned just under 3 miles. 

Debris in the area was lofted up into the air, and Mill Race Storage facility had its roof peeled completely off. Debris was then tossed into a field nearby up to 200 yards away. 

A few garage doors also appeared to have been pushed in by the winds. 

You can read more about the survey report here. 

The EF Scale is rated 0 through 5. It's based on estimated wind speeds and related damage. 

The National Weather Service in Grand Rapids finished surveying damage in Van Buren County in the Hartford and Lawrence areas along I-94 and determined it was from strictly 60+ mph winds.

Thunderstorms erupted in NE Illinois, spawning several tornadoes in the suburbs of Chicago, and then crossed Lake Michigan into lower Michigan early in the evening.

Numerous severe thunderstorm and tornado warnings were issued as the storms threatened parts of Van Buren, Allegan, Kalamazoo, Barry and Ionia counties between 8:45 p.m. and midnight Wednesday.

The region received two to three-plus inches of rain between Wednesday afternoon and evening. 

Credit: 13 On Your Side Weather
Rainfall Totals - July 12-23, 2023

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