A tornado impacted northern Michigan this Friday afternoon and left at least one dead and more than 20 injured who were taken to hospitals by ambulance, and caused damage to homes and businesses in the city of Gaylord, authorities reported.
NBC News affiliate WPBN of Traverse City, Michigan aired footage of mobile homes destroyed and even upside down at a trailer park in Gaylord.
It also showed destroyed buildings near the theaters known as Gaylord Cinema West, as well as overturned cars and destroyed trees.
Power outages in the area forced Gaylord's Otsego Memorial Hospital to
divert new patients to other health centers
, the station reported.
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More than 22,000 customers in northern Michigan were without power Friday, according to PowerOutage.US, including more than a third of customers in Gaylord.
Damage from a tornado this Friday in Gaylord, Michigan. John Flesher / AP
Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer said Friday that she would commit to providing the necessary resources to repair the damaged areas.
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"My heart goes out to all those families and small businesses impacted by the tornado and severe weather in Gaylord," he tweeted.
"To the entire Gaylord community:
Michigan stands with you"
.
"Never take shelter under a bridge."
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Eddie Thrasher, 55, said he was sitting in his car outside a store when the tornado closed in on him.
"The roofs of businesses were blown off and I saw trucks that ended up being overturned and destroyed
. There were several emergency vehicles heading for the destruction."
Thrasher hid in the store as he passed.
"My adrenaline was like crazy. In less than five minutes it was over."
With information from
AP
and
NBC News