Midwest, South Hit With Baseball-Sized Hail, Heavy Rain and Tornadoes

A severe storm brought thunderstorms, large hail and heavy rains to the Midwest and South on Thursday, destroying trees and homes, and giving way to suspected tornadoes in Missouri and Texas.

A suspected tornado destroyed a farmhouse and a mobile home Thursday night, injuring four people near the Texas town of Merit, which is about 40 miles northeast of Dallas, reports the Associated Press.

In Denton, Texas, an early evening storm uprooted trees and dropped baseball-sized hail, said the city's police department spokesman Ryan Grelle. The National Weather Service in Tulsa reported hail up to the size of ping pong balls and strong wind gusts.

From the center of Texas to the northeast corner of Missouri, the National Weather Service noted 34 reports of strong winds that blew off roofs and downed power lines, in addition to 115 reports of hail.

A twister moved through the St. Louis suburb of University City, damaging 94 homes just before 6 a.m. CDT on Thursday, said City Manager Lehman Walker, reports Reuters. He added that the tornado uprooted large trees and downed power lines, but caused no injuries. National Weather Service meteorologist Jayson Gosselin reported that the EF-1 tornado packed winds that reached up to 110 miles per hour. The storm also produced heavy rain that caused streams to overflow and street flooding, he said.

About 50 miles east of Kansas City, Johnson County, Mo. received up to 5 inches of rain on Wednesday and Thursday morning, which flooded railroad tracks and suspended the Amtrak rail service.

"I have been here 13 years and never has Amtrak been shut down because of flooding," said Gloria Michalski, director of Johnson County emergency services.

There was smaller hail in Arkansas along with falling tree limbs that knocked out power in western parts of the state.