COLUMBUS, Ohio — Power outages are slowly declining as crews work to bring electricity back to homes after Tuesday night's severe storms.
Power outages remain high in Darke and Pike counties according to poweroutage.us. The state was still reporting more than 5,000 outages Wednesday afternoon, a decrease from 11,000 earlier in the morning.
Strong storms ripped through parts of west-central and southern Ohio. The National Weather Service is conducting storm surveys after reports of damage, possible tornadoes and flooding.
NWS Wilmington was conducting surveys in Warren County, Butler County, Darke County and Mercer County within the Buckeye State and another survey was taking place in Franklin County, Ind.
So far, the NWS has confirmed three tornadoes from the storms.
Officials said one person was injured in Darke County, located in west-central Ohio, following a storm that moved across the county just after 8 p.m. Tuesday. The sheriff’s office said damage was first reported just west of the city of Greenville. The storm then moved through the city where some property damage has been reported, along with reports of downed power lines and trees.
Greenville City Schools will be closed Wednesday because of storm damage. Officials said damage was reported at Harmon Field, located on the campus of Greenville High School.
Officials said they will have a better idea of the extent of the damage on Wednesday.
In southern Ohio, officials in Butler County, just north of Cincinnati, said they’ve received reports of power lines and poles down in Reily Township. They’ve also received reports of damage to homes and farms. No injuries have been reported. Several roads are closed until further notice as debris is cleared.
Law enforcement reported damaged trees and utility poles in the neighboring Warren County. Officials are still out evaluating damage early Wednesday morning.
No injuries had been reported as of 1:30 a.m.
Authorities said damage was reported in Jefferson County in far eastern Ohio as a storm moved through early Wednesday. Officials received reports of damage to homes and trees near Irondale.
No other information has been released as crews work to evaluate the extent of the damage.
Heavy rains produced flash flooding as several rounds of storms moved through central and southern Ohio, including along I-75 in Hamilton County and I-71 near the Polaris neighborhood outside Columbus.
Tuesday's storms came a day after parts of the central United States were battered by heavy rain, strong winds, hail and twisters. Both the Plains and Midwest have been hammered by tornadoes this spring.
As the storms moved east in the pre-dawn hours Wednesday, the National Weather Service in Pittsburgh warned that a tornado in northeastern Ohio could cross into Pennsylvania.
Across the U.S., the entire week is looking stormy. The eastern U.S. and the South are expected to get the brunt of the bad weather through the rest of the week, including in Indianapolis, Memphis, Nashville, St. Louis and Cincinnati — cities where more than 21 million people live. It should be clear over the weekend.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.