(WWJ) The National Weather Service says multiple tornadoes touched down on the west side of the state Tuesday evening, injuring as many as 20 people in Kalamazoo County.
The National Weather Service issued the first-ever Tornado Emergency in Michigan as a “damaging tornado” was spotted near Union City, about 37 miles southeast of Kalamazoo.
The NWS said the tornado was accompanied by hail up to two inches in size.
Another tornado that touched down in Portage severely damaged a FedEx facility, with photos showing extensive damage in a Facebook post from WWMT in Kalamazoo.
Nathan Jerusal with the NWS Grand Rapids told WWJ's Luke Sloan a second tornado touched down in Portage about an hour after the first one hit the FedEx building.
Andrew Alspach, of Kalamazoo County Emergency Management, said a total of 15 to 20 injured people were transported to two area hospitals.
He said all of those people had minor injuries, and there were no fatalities.
Along with the FedEx building, Alspach said a mobile home park in Pavilion Twp. and numerous other businesses and homes in the area were damaged.
He said National Weather Service would be sending a team down from Grand Rapids on Wednesday to assess the tornado strength.
Tuesday night, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer declared a state of emergency for Kalamazoo, St. Joseph, Branch, and Cass counties.
“My heart goes out to all those impacted by tonight’s severe weather in southwest Michigan,” said Whitmer. “State and local emergency teams are on the ground and working together to assist Michiganders. I’ve declared a state of emergency to ensure resources are expedited to the area and activated our State Emergency Operations Center. We will continue monitoring the situation and coordinating efforts overnight. I want to thank all the first responders working hard to keep Michiganders safe. We’ll get through this together.”
Metro Detroit was spared, as the storms weakened, losing their intensity before reaching Southeast Michigan Tuesday night. Washtenaw, Monroe and Lenawee Counties were under a Tornado Watch, which expired at 11 p.m.
A Special Weather Statement for parts of Oakland County, including Troy, Farmington Hills and Rochester Hills — warning of 40 mph wind gusts and nickel-sized hail — expired at 9:15 p.m. Tuesday.
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