Thousands without power after severe storms swept through the region, downing several trees but causing minimal damage to buildings

Cleanup is underway after severe thunderstorms moved through south-central Illinois early Sunday evening. A tornado warning was issued for most of the region, including Marion, Clinton, Washington and Fayette counties, as the line of extremely severe storms and high winds moved through. There was a report of a tornado aloft north of Conservation Road in rural Patoka, but no known landfall. So far no injuries have been reported.

Marion County Sheriff Kevin Cripps and Salem Police Chief Kyle Ambuehl are encouraging everyone to stay home to help and avoid a tragedy if they come into contact with a live power line. Some roads are impassable due to downed trees, sometimes crossed by live power lines.

Most of the problems are related to fallen trees and tree branches that have been destroyed by high winds. There are several power outages. Ameren Illinois, as of 10 p.m., reported 1,061 customers in Salem, 1,230 in Sandoval and 194 in Centralia. Tri-County Electric reports more than 3,600 without power in Marion County, including 1,167 at the Iuka substation, 1,154 at the Salem substation, 800 at the Patoka substation, 771 at the South Salem substation and 758 to the Kinmundy substation. Tri-County has no estimate for how long crews will need to restore power. In addition to the damage to its system, Tri-County reports that some substation outages are due to Ameren's lack of power.

Salem firefighters reported more than 20 storm-related calls, two of which involved damaged power lines that sparked fires. Firefighters report the contents of a shed on Alisa Barnes' property in the 100 block of Woodland Drive caught fire, damaging a few bags of clothing and causing smoke damage. There was no structural damage. The second fire occurred at the home of Gilbert Sidener in the 1200 block of West Bennett, where a tree fell on a power line, causing a fire in a backyard shed. The fire was limited to the exterior cladding. Firefighters also responded to a residence on Cedar Street where a large tree branch passed through the roof of a residence.

Marion County Sheriff's deputies and Iuka firefighters were dispatched to Forbes State Park, where two vehicles were stuck between two large downed trees near the east entrance. Trees were cut down to reopen the road. Minor damage was reported at campgrounds, but no injuries.

Campers were also damaged at the Coles Creek Campground on Carlyle near Boulder in Clinton County, as well as a large camper that overturned on Illinois Route 127 north of Carlyle, near the lake. An estimated eight utility poles were also toppled along Highway 127 north of Carlyle.

The Marion County Sheriff's Department called in three additional deputies to handle calls, while Salem police also added officers to the street.

The storm also contained hail. The Salem area received mostly pea-sized hail.

This story will be updated as more information is received. If you have any information about any damage, please let us know. Photos can be sent to [email protected].