HILLSBORO, Ohio — The Highland County Sheriff’s Office is warning drivers of numerous trees and power lines down across the county after Tuesday’s severe storms, with the heaviest damage reported south of U.S. Route 50, as the county’s emergency management agency asks residents to report storm damage to their property.
UPDATE (Aug. 11, 6:03 p.m.): This story has been updated with additional information from the Highland County Sheriff’s Office.
The sheriff’s office said in a Facebook post that emergency crews and power companies are working to clear roadways and restore electricity, and it urged residents to be cautious if they have to travel Tuesday evening.
The National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm warning for Highland County shortly after 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, citing wind gusts up to 60 mph and hail up to three-quarters of an inch. Minutes later, forecasters issued a tornado warning for parts of the county after radar detected rotation within the storm, cautioning that flying debris could endanger anyone caught outdoors and that mobile homes could be damaged or destroyed. A second severe thunderstorm warning followed for the southern part of the county before both warnings expired around 5 p.m.
In a separate Facebook post, the Highland County Emergency Management Agency asked county residents who suffered property damage from the storms to fill out an online damage report form. The agency said the reports help local officials assess the overall impact of the storms and determine whether additional assistance is needed.
The Highland County EMA operates under Ohio Revised Code Section 5502, which requires every county to maintain an emergency management program to reduce the impact of disasters and support community recovery efforts. The agency is headquartered in Hillsboro and is led by Director David Bushelman.
The EMA asked residents to share its post to help spread word of the damage-reporting effort throughout the county.
The information contained in this story was obtained from the Highland County Sheriff’s Office, the Highland County Emergency Management Agency and the National Weather Service.
