Several tornadoes likely hit Indiana, Ohio; no bad injuries

KOKOMO, Ind. (AP) — In a central Indiana city where trees were sheared off at their stumps by one of several tornadoes in the region, residents began the hard work today of cleaning up destroyed or damaged homes and businesses.

The EF3 tornado packing winds of up to 165 mph that swept through the south side of Kokomo, Ind., on Wednesday afternoon toppled a Starbucks coffee shop and tore apart numerous homes. One of them belonged to 45-year-old Mark Martinez, who was out picking up his daughter from school and returned to find everything but the bedrooms on one side of his house destroyed.

Indiana Gov. Mike Pence hugged and chatted with residents in a neighborhood where the damage seemed to skip some homes altogether. Pence credited quick thinking and early warnings of the approaching storm for the lack of serious injuries; Howard County Sheriff Steve Rogers said only 10 to 15 residents in the city 40 miles north of Indianapolis had minor injuries.

"It's a miracle and it's a testament to good common sense," Pence said.

The Kokomo tornado was one of several that swept through central and northern Indiana and northwest Ohio on Wednesday.

In Ohio, damage was reported in four counties, including Van Wert County, where officials said at least two tornadoes touched down about 2 miles apart, tearing roofs off homes and flattening barns. A tornado warning also briefly stopped KISS from shouting out loud during a show at Toledo, Ohio, though there was no touchdown.