Significant damage across northwest parts of Oklahoma City area

The storms that hit Tuesday evening continued through the night, with flooding becoming an issue early Wednesday.

Like many homeowners in The Village, Victoria Blair, 60, was outside cleaning up debris and tree limbs in her front yard Wednesday. More storms were expected to hit Wednesday evening.

“Am I really stupid cleaning all this stuff up before tonight? I don't know,” she said. “I'm getting tired of being scared of the weather.”

Keli Cain, spokeswoman for the state Emergency Management Department, said one tornado was confirmed in Canadian County, three miles southwest of Piedmont. Most of the damage across the state was from hail up to the size of softballs and wind gusts that reached as high as 85 miles per hour.

Hail damaged the roofs and windows of many homes and broke out car windshields.

Hail smashed roof tiles and stained-glass windows on the south side of Christ the King Catholic Church in Nichols Hills, said Patrick Cullen, church business manager. The damage could exceed $600,000, Cullen said.

In 2010, hail caused $1.7 million damage to the church, Cullen said.

“I'm just pulling figures out of the air here, but I am remembering what it was two years ago,” he said.

He said two large trees had to be removed from the church property, every skylight in the church shattered and windows were broken out of two vans in the parking lot. Outdoor lights around the property also were broken.

The storms also knocked out power in many areas.

As many as 40,000 Oklahoma Gas and Electric Co. customers were without power Wednesday morning, most of them in Oklahoma City.