Storm damage hits most of Seneca County

TIFFIN — Several parts of the county were hit by a series of sudden thunderstorms and winds last night, leaving several roadways flooded and cutting power to others. Several roads have been closed by the city of Tiffin, so far including: ● Rebecca Street from Greenfield to Circular ● Summit Street (Hedges-Boyer Park) closed from the YMCA to the Clive Lupton Bridge ● Charlotte and Union Streets closed from 2nd St. to 4th St. Additionally, staff at the Tiffin YMCA closed the facility for the day, sharing on social media that they had to put floodgates up around the building, which sits at the bottom of the hill on Summit St. Residents should be prepared for potential additional road closures as the rainfall continues into the evening. At approximately 11:05 a.m., the National Weather Service in Cleveland issued a flood warning for the Sandusky River at Tiffin, with minor flooding expected from this afternoon through early Friday morning. As of late Wednesday morning, the river was at 8.7 feet and is forecast to rise above the 9-foot flood stage later in the day, cresting around 10.4 feet just after midnight before receding Thursday evening. According to the NWS, flooding is expected along the Sandusky River near OH 53 north of US 224, with TR 131 becoming impassable. Officials at NWS continue to warn drivers not to travel through flooded roadways. Seneca County Sheriff Frederick Stevens shared a statement early Wednesday morning, approximately 4:10 a.m. asking residents to be extra cautious this morning. "The crews cannot put out the signs fast enough and you may quickly come upon a washed out section," he said. An update from the Sheriff roughly an hour later noted that crews had run out of signs due to the amount of areas in the county affected. Major power outages According to AEP Ohio, 625 customers in the village of Attica lost power at approximately 4:49 p.m. on Tuesday, March 31, and was restored at approximately 4:40 p.m. on Thursday, April 1. Members of the Attica-Venice-Reed Fire District shared that the power outage is connected to several downed power lines on Ohio Route 4 South. "At this time it appears to be damage as a result of straight-line winds, we did not have any reports of rotating wall clouds or funnel clouds," said Chief Lonnie Jaynes. "All of the damage and debris appeared to be in one direction, and was not twisted- as you would normally expect to see from a tornado." A statement from AEP shared Wednesday morning cites additional outages throughout the state. "Strong winds and severe storms caused extensive damage last night, leaving about 5,000 customers without power. Crews worked around the clock and have restored electricity to all but 1,700 customers," said representatives. "Thank you for your understanding as they continue working today as quickly as they safely can."