STORM DAMAGES HOMES

Judy Woods felt "lucky to be alive" Sunday afternoon after high winds ripped the roof from her Scott City home just as she grabbed her 3-year-old daughter Autumn and headed for the basement.

"Whether it was a tornado or high winds," she said, "I just don't know what it was."

The Missouri Weather Cooperative at the Cape Girardeau Regional Airport reported a wind gust up of to 79 miles an hour at 1:47 p.m., about the time Woods' roof was peeled from her home at 405 Harvard. About half dozen other homes in Scott City had damage from either wind or flying debris, including tree limbs.

Woods' husband, Mike, who was working at the Department of Public Safety at the university, heard that his home was damaged on a police scanner in the office.

"Then the phone rang," he said, "and it was my wife calling to tell me what had happened and that they were OK."

The ceiling fan mounted in the Woods' dining room was sitting in a neighbor's yard Sunday afternoon along with much of the home's roof, trusses and fiberglass insulation from the attic. Friends and family were helping the Woods cover furniture and electronics with tarps since the kitchen, living room and dining room were left exposed to the elements

Damage was widespread Sunday afternoon. The winds caused isolated power outages and downed trees that temporarily blocked some roads. At least two small fires from lightning strikes were reported along with small hail.

A tree fell on a trailer home in Allenville during the storm and minor damage to at least two other homes was reported, according to the Cape Girardeau County Emergency Operations Center.

Trees also were downed around the EOC's administrative offices and the Cape Girardeau County Courthouse in Jackson.

A downed tree blocked a southbound lane of Interstate 55 south of Scott City until a highway department crew could push it to the shoulder.

A spokesperson for Union Electric said crews were working to restore power to many areas by late Sunday evening. More than 7,600 customers experienced some type of extended power loss Sunday because of the storm system, she said.

Lightening struck Cape Girardeau's southern water pumping station, causing low water pressure in some nearby homes. Crews were working to restore power to the station late into Sunday night.

Despite the numerous area reports of damage, no one was seriously injured during the storm according to area law enforcement agencies. Tornado warnings were issued for several counties, area law enforcement agencies had no confirmed spottings.

The same storm system that moved through the area Sunday afternoon spawned a tornado that caused heavy damage and injured one person in a southwest Missouri town earlier Sunday.

The tornado touched down at 10:50 a.m. in Conway, located on the Laclede County line about 30 miles northeast of Springfield.

It cut a path of destruction about one-fourth-mile wide and 5 miles long.

One person at a car wash suffered minor injuries when the roof was blown off. A restaurant on the same lot was destroyed.

Trees were uprooted throughout the town of about 600 people. Much of the damage to buildings in the town was caused by falling trees, which also blocked roads.

The storm struck Conway just after rolling through Long Lane, where strong winds caused extensive damage. Livestock also were reported killed or injured.

There were several reports of three-fourths-inch hail in the Lake of the Ozarks area, and large hail measuring 1.25 inches pounded Golden City northwest of Springfield.

The storm also knocked down trees in Mountain View and Willow Springs, where a falling tree destroyed a hardware store.

Some information for this story was provided by the Associated Press.