Tornado ravages Perry County; at least 1 death reported

A tornado ripped through Perry County, Missouri, on Tuesday evening, forcing the closure of a six-mile stretch of Interstate 55 and bringing with it reports of significant damage and at least one fatality.

The National Weather Service reported a trained spotter saw a funnel cloud near Silver Lake — an unincorporated community in Perry County — that snapped or uprooted large trees shortly before 8 p.m. Tuesday.

Minutes later, a trained spotter reported seeing a large tornado within power flashes and lightning, the service reported.

Cars were damaged by an apparent tornado Tuesday night on Perry County Road 806 north of Perryville, Missouri. Andrew J. Whitaker ~ awhitaker@semissourian.com

At 8:11 p.m., the Perry County emergency manager told the National Weather Service vehicles had been overturned along Interstate 55 near mile marker 133, with “considerable damage” and deaths reported, according to the service.

A Southeast Missourian photographer saw emergency personnel arriving to an area near County Road 806 at 8:35 p.m., where a house and a nearby shop were destroyed.

He saw several downed trees.

Bystanders survey damage from an apparent tornado that struck Tuesday night on Perry County Road 806 north of Perryville, Missouri. Andrew J. Whitaker ~ awhitaker@semissourian.com

Another Southeast Missourian photographer also at the scene saw an overturned vehicle and several others badly damaged in a lot.

Interstate 55 was gridlocked with traffic, he said.

A man from a local business was clearing debris from the roadways using a forklift, the photographer said.

People look at damage from an apparent tornado that struck Tuesday night on Perry County Road 806 north of Perryville, Missouri.Ben Mathews ~ bmatthews@semissourian.com

Roughly 1,600 people were without power in Perry County by 11 p.m., said Steve Elsea, manager of member services for Citizens Electric Corporation, which serves the region. The outages include about 15 percent of the system’s total customers.

“We’ve sustained major transmission and distribution damage. ... The damage has been fairly extensive,” Elsea said. “We’ve got all of our crews working through the night and have called for statewide assistance from other cooperatives.”

He said the company hopes that assistance will bring an extra 18 to 24 people to assist the more than 45 crewpeople already working to repair the system.

He said there wasn’t an expected restoration time yet.

Compared to the outages caused by an ice storm a little over a year ago, he said, the tornado appears to have been much more damaging.

“[Then,] we had people back in service between 36 to 48 hours,” he said. “This may be a little bit longer than that.”

The interstate was closed in both directions from mile marker 129 to mile marker 135, according to a news release from the Missouri Department of Transportation, which advised travelers to avoid the area.

U.S. 61 — which parallels I-55 through much of the area — also was closed, the department reported.

In a statement emailed to media outlets Tuesday night, Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens said the state’s emergency-management agency had deployed strikes teams and resources to Perryville.

About 9:40 p.m., police scanner traffic indicated another tornado had been reported northwest of Marble Hill, Missouri.

A short time later, a Bollinger County, Missouri, emergency manager reported a funnel cloud near Routes JJ and M, according to the National Weather Service.

The storms reached Cape Girardeau County a few minutes after 10 p.m., with an emergency manager reporting golf-ball-size hail near Pocahontas, the service reported.

The American Red Cross of Southeast Missouri planned to open an emergency shelter at 10:15 p.m. Tuesday at the Perry Park Center, 800 City Park Lane in Perryville.

Greitens urged other areas of Southeast Missouri to exercise caution as a tornado watch remained in effect until 4 a.m. today for Bollinger, Butler, Cape Girardeau, Carter, Dunklin, Mississippi, New Madrid, Pemiscot, Perry, Ripley, Scott, Stoddard and Wayne counties.

“If you or a loved one live in these counties, please be alert, vigilant and safe tonight,” Greitens said.

Elsewhere in the region, an off-duty Illinois State Police trooper reported seeing a tornado on the ground, causing widespread home and tree damage, about 8:30 p.m. in Ava, Illinois.

At 8:42 p.m., a trained spotter reported seeing a large tornado crossing Highway 4 about four miles south of Vergennes, Illinois, and at 10:18 p.m., a fire department reported golf-ball-size hail near Grand Tower, Illinois.

Cape Girardeau Police Department public-information officer Sgt. Adam Glueck said at 8:47 p.m. police had offered to assist authorities in Perry County but hadn’t sent any personnel at that time.

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