A tornado has already been confirmed to have touched down in Harrison County from Monday’s storms in southern Indiana.
National Weather Service workers think the same happened in Spencer County as well. But, they aren’t able to confirm it yet, not because of a lack of damage in the county, but because they were told to abandon their investigation because of the partial federal government shutdown.
The EF-1 twister in Spencer County with estimated peak winds of 105 mph touched down Monday afternoon near the intersection of State Roads 62 and 162 near the communities of St. Meinrad and Mariah Hill damaging at least three homes, mostly to their roofs and fascia.
A detached garage was destroyed with the debris thrown at least 300 yards. At least three metal farm buildings sustained minor roof damage in the tornado’s 3-mile path.
The National Weather Service is under the jurisdiction of the US Department of Commerce, which was one of the federal departments that ran out of money December 21st.
The National Weather Service has stayed open in spite of the shutdown, but with only essential services running at full capacity.
