MIDDLETOWN, Ohio — Middletown police set off the tornado sirens Thursday night after an "unconfirmed report of a tornado" in the southern part of Middletown.
Officers with Middletown said they checked out the reported area and found no damage.
Middletown was not under any severe storm warnings at the time the sirens went off.
There were storms in the area, with severe thunderstorm warnings issued just south and east of Middletown, but no tornadic activity could be seen on radar in the city at the time the sirens were activated.
Police Chief David Birk told our news partners The Journal-News that calls came into the police department from residents living in the area of Yankee Road and University Boulevard, but police officers on the scene didn’t confirm a tornado.
“It’s best to be safe,” Birk told the Journal-News of the decision to set off the sirens.
We are setting off the tornado sirens Please take shelter due to an unconfirmed report of a tornado near the southern portion of Middletown.
— Middletown Division of Police (@MPDOhio) May 20, 2022
Storms produced hail, 60 mph winds and hundreds of lightning strikes across the rest of the Tri-State Thursday. At the peak of the storm, more than 12,000 people were without power. Multiple reports of tree branches down and other debris in roadways came in throughout the storms.
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