Sunday, Monday storms damage buildings, knock out power

A strong thunderstorm blew through the area Sunday afternoon with heavy winds downing trees and causing power outages across Southeast Missouri. Here a tree is seen blown onto a house at Tanner and Ranney. (Alex Wallner/Standard Democrat)

Strong thunderstorms swept across Southeast Missouri Sunday afternoon and again Monday evening, causing damage in some communities.

Locally, strong winds downed trees and in some cases damaged homes and property.

On Sunday, a section of roof at Marston City Hall was torn off while power lines, telephone poles and trees were pulled down and homes across Marston also had their roofs damaged.

Workers with Sikeston Board of Municipal Utilities work on power lines Monday afternoon after strong storms hit Sikeston Sunday. (David Jenkins/Standard Democrat)

Also on Sunday, in Sikeston, a large tree was blown on top of a home at Tanner and Ranney while downed limbs were also found across roadways.

The Missouri Highway Patrol reported multiple crashes due to the storm and trees blocking roadways in Stoddard County as well as damage south of Holcomb that destroyed a barn.

Stoddard County Emergency Management Director Kent Polsgrove said he has received damage reports from across the county. Polsgrove said the reports thus far have consisted of trees down across roadways and power lines.

A building is damaged from storms that struck Gideon, Mo., Monday evening.

Delta Dunklin Democrat photo

More strong storms ripped through the Bootheel Monday evening, causing damage in several communities.

In Gideon, strong winds damaged numerous buildings and downed power lines while in Campbell a train derailed due to the high winds.

According to a statement from the Union Pacific Railroad, 25 rail cars came off the tracks just west of Campbell, near Highway 62 and County Road 217. No one was injured and none of the contents of the cars spilled.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol reported that Highway 62 from the Campbell city limits to the Arkansas state line was closed down while the area was cleaned up.

Monday’s storms left as many as 10,000 without power at one time. According to a statement from Ozark Border Electric Cooperative’s Facebook page, crew members began working Sunday to restore power and some crew had worked for 31-hours straight.

“This is the biggest disaster to hit OBEC since the ice storm of 2009,” according to the statement.

The City of Portageville released a statement Tuesday afternoon, advising residents it could be 24 hours or longer before power is restored.

Portageville residents are being asked to conserve water. According to the City of Portageville, there should be no unnecessary water usage. “The City is working with Emergency Management to receive large generators at the water plant as early as (Wednesday) morning to insure efficient water supply. Smaller generators are being brought in to help the sewer department at our lift stations,” the statement read.

– The Dexter Statesman contributed to this report.