Tornado touches down in Wooster; Stark spared

WOOSTER — Trained weather spotters said a tornado went through Wayne County on Thursday evening, according to the National Weather Service.

It appeared that Stark County was spared the worst of the powerful thunderstorms that swept through the region. A dispatcher at the Stark County Sheriff’s Department said no reports of storm damage were received.

Almost 3,300 American Electric Power customers in Tuscarawas County were in the dark. Tuscarawas was second-hardest hit. Less than 400 in Stark County were without power at 9 p.m., after the storm had passed.

But in Wayne County, more than 6,300 customers were without power, according to the company’s website. About 1,000 were without power in Holmes County.

FirstEnergy Corp. was reporting smaller power outages in its territory in Stark and Wayne counties.

An Ohio Highway Patrol dispatcher in Wooster said a tornado touched down on the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development property near the patrol post around 5:30 p.m. There was damage, but no immediate reports of injuries as of 6 p.m.

A Wayne County Sheriff’s official said later that numerous buildings and vehicles were damaged. Large trees were uprooted, and, along with tree limbs, were causing the power outages in the county.

The tornado was not confirmed by the weather service.

http://www.cantonrep.com/stark/x372513395/Tornado-touches-down-in-Wooster-area