Power Outage in Midway, KY

Trees and power lines were down on Blair Road.

A National Weather Service damage survey revealed a brief EF-0 tornado struck the west side of the community of Midway. The tornado occurred along Highway 1828 and traveled about one-quarter mile northeast across U.S. Highway 641. On Highway 1828, approximately half of the roof was ripped off a single family residence, including the decking and some rafters. Small tree limbs were broken, and the underpinning was blown from a mobile home. Power lines were brought down. Peak winds were estimated near 85 mph.

The Woodford County Emergency Manager reported several trees blocking State Highway 62 near Midway. Power was out to much of Midway.

Countywide, several roads were blocked due to downed trees and power lines. There were scattered power outages.

An intense microburst carved a damage swath from northwest to southeast across the city of Murray. The damage path was about 3.5 miles long and three-quarters of a mile wide. The damage began on the northwest side of town and ended near Highway 121 just southeast of town. Significant structural damage occurred as a result of peak winds estimated up to 105 mph in a very small area. The vast majority of the damage was from winds of 60 to 80 mph. Damage at Murray State University included a damaged dorm wall and many trees down. Windows were blown out on campus. Debris was blown onto cars in the campus parking lots, damaging vehicles. A batting cage at the college was blown several hundred yards into the parking lot of a bank. An Office Depot store on the north side of town along U.S. Highway 641 sustained minor to moderate roof damage. The roofs of several other buildings, including a Dollar General store, were damaged at a shopping plaza on Highway 641 in town. Much of the roof damage was minor, consisting of cosmetic materials. Debris from stores in the plaza damaged cars in a nearby parking lot. The most significant structural damage occurred to a couple of storage buildings, where roofs were blown off. The door was blown off a movie theater. Numerous trees were blown down in the city, including some that landed on houses. Downed trees and power poles blocked streets, including some major ones. In city parks, batting cages and a baseball dugout were damaged or destroyed. Power lines were down. A couple of empty 15,000-pound semi trailers were overturned.

The peak intensity of the tornado was rated F-2, with estimated maximum winds near 125 MPH. Although the tornado was only on the ground for a mile or two, it struck the small community of Midway directly, causing extensive damage. Two mobile homes housing migrant workers were destroyed. One of the persons in a mobile home was seriously injured. Three others sustained relatively minor injuries. A used car dealership and a grocery store sustained major damage to roofs and walls. Several additional homes, mobile homes, and barns received moderate to major damage. Numerous trees in the area were downed or uprooted. U.S. Highway 641 was closed for about 18 hours south of Murray due to debris and power lines across the road. The owner of the grocery and an attached home estimated his losses at just under 100,000 dollars.