Tornadoes leave 4 dead in Massachusetts

— At least two tornadoes swept through western and central Massachusetts on Wednesday, slamming debris into buildings, toppling trees and killing four people, the governor said.

The storms did extensive damage in Springfield, the state’s third-largest city with 150,000 people. About 40 people were injured, Mayor Domenic J. Sarno said.

One person died in Springfield, two in West Springfield and another in Brimfield, authorities said. Tornadoes were reported in several other communities, including Monson and Sturbridge.

Gov. Deval Patrick declared a state of emergency and mobilized 1,000 National Guard troops.

“It is early going yet, so those are not final numbers, although we are hoping and praying and working as hard as possible to keep the fatalities limited to those four,” he said. An estimated 55,000 homes were without power.

The first twister struck at rush hour. The second followed about 6:20 p.m., officials said.

Thomas Walsh, who works at Springfield City Hall, said he was looking out his window about 4:30 p.m. when he saw the funnel.

“I could see this massive cloud of debris floating around in a circular, cylindrical fashion,” he said.

“It looked like birds were flying out of the trees and it was rubble,” said Martha Vachon, who was photographing a regional high school prom in Springfield, nearly 90 miles west of Boston.

Jane Albert, a spokeswoman for Baystate Medical Center in Springfield, said 10 seriously injured people and a significant number of less seriously injured were being treated.

“There is search and rescue going on throughout the region now, so we expect more patients,” she said.

Bob Pashko of West Springfield said he was coming from his doctor’s office when the storm began and went to a downtown Springfield bar to wait for a ride.

“The next thing you know, the TV says a tornado hit the railroad bridge in West Springfield,” said Pashko, 50. “It’s the baddest I’ve seen.”

The Rev. Bob Marrone of the First Church of Monson said the storm cleared a path across the valley where the town sits.

“I can see the plywood of roofs and see houses where most of the house is gone,” he said. “The road that runs up in front of my house … there’s so many trees down, it’s completely impassable.”

A tornado watch had been in effect for much of the East Coast, including Philadelphia, New York and Boston.

This has been the deadliest tornado season in decades. Southern states were hit hard in April, and Joplin, Mo., was devastated May 22 by a massive twister that killed 134 people. On Wednesday, officials lowered Joplin’s death toll from 139 and said all the missing had been accounted for.

Massachusetts hadn’t experienced a tornado since 2008, according to the Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Okla. The last deadly tornado in the state was on May 29, 1995, when three people were killed in the town of Great Barrington.