Midwest Storms Kill at Least 2, Cut Power to 670,000+

Severe storms tore through the Midwest on Tuesday, spawning tornadoes and knocking out power to hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses, with at least two deaths confirmed in the region.

A 4-year-old boy was killed in Jennings County, Indiana, when a tree fell on his family's mobile home Tuesday afternoon, local authorities said. In Ohio, Gov. Mike DeWine said a Roseville resident died during a health emergency after flooded roads prevented first responders from reaching them in time.

Just south of Cleveland, 16 people were hospitalized after lightning struck a state prison. In Portage, Indiana, at least one person was killed after a structure caught fire when it was hit by wind gusts up to 99 mph; officials are still investigating the cause.

As of early Wednesday, more than 220,000 customers remained without power in Ohio, with another 450,000 in the dark across Indiana and Illinois, according to utility tracker PowerOutage.us. Outages were also reported in West Virginia and Kentucky.

The National Weather Service confirmed tornadoes touched down in Chicago's south suburbs Tuesday, flooding roads, tangling trees in power lines and tearing gashes in rooftops. Flights were briefly halted at Chicago's two major airports.

Residents described terrifying scenes. "Total devastation. No roof," said Kerry Hourigan of Tinley Park, Illinois, whose home of 25 years was damaged. In Crown Point, Indiana, Hailey Mogan said she and co-workers barricaded themselves in a bathroom as the storm hit. "The next thing you know, like, not even 5 seconds later, just wind," she said.

Meteorologist Scott Baker said the Midwest sat on the edge of a "ring of fire" weather pattern, in which a high-pressure zone triggers heavy rain and thunderstorms along its perimeter.

DeWine warned the danger isn't over. "This is not something that will end tonight," he said, as forecasters predicted additional rounds of rain would bring flood risks to the Ohio Valley through early Friday. Columbus sent government workers home early ahead of more storms, and a library in Westerville closed after rain poured into its atrium.