Thunderstorms, Winds Buffet Midwest, Blowing Cars Off Roads

Thunderstorms packing 70-m.p.h. winds buffeted the Midwest early Saturday, blowing cars off roads and flattening buildings.

Showers and thunderstorms were scattered across Florida, the Great Lakes, the lower Ohio Valley, the middle and lower Mississippi Valley as well as the Southern plains.

Thunderstorm winds gusted to 46 m.p.h. at Lansing, Mich., and almost three-fourths of an inch of rain fell in one hour at Fort Smith, Ark.

One to four inches of rain was common overnight from southern Missouri across southeast Kansas to northeast Oklahoma. Pittsburg, Kan., received 4.25 inches of rain in a 24-hour period, and 3.75 inches fell in Joplin, Mo.

Heavy thunderstorms also rumbled through the San Antonio area, where more than four inches of rain fell. The National Weather Service issued a flash-flood warning for five central Texas counties late Saturday morning because of heavy rains.

The rains followed a night of severe thunderstorms and tornadoes that overturned campers, downed power lines and tore the roof off a barn.

A police officer sent to secure a wind-damaged warehouse in Sedalia, Mo., early Saturday said: “It looked like a giant can opener had gone around and opened it up.”

Cars were blown off roads near Sedalia and in Versailles, Mo.

A twister Friday night left about 2,500 residents of Cameron, Mo., without electrical power. By mid-morning Saturday, power had been restored to most residents.

An intense low-pressure system coming down from Canada brought gusty winds to the upper Great Lakes. Gale warnings were in effect Saturday for the eastern half of Lake Superior and the northern third of Lake Michigan.

Strong winds prevailed across the northern Washington coast, and a gale warning was posted for the Strait of Juan de Fuca.