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Warren home destroyed by severe weather that brought hail, funnel clouds, and 90k+ power outages

By and Jack Nissen
Published  July 20, 2023 10:07pm EDT
Severe Weather
FOX 2 Detroit

Warren home hit by tree, lit on fire after severe weather

A chaotic scene left one home in Warren severely damaged after power lines came down from an uprooted tree. Perhaps the biggest surprise of the evening though was the homeowner's positive outlook after the incident.

WARREN, Mich. (FOX 2) - Trees uprooted, nearly a hundred thousand homes without power, and another round of severe weather were all reminders of what Mother Nature is capable of after storms swept through Southeast Michigan Thursday.

For Keith Carlson, the unfortunate victim of a tree collapsing onto his Warren home this afternoon, he's just trying to keep it in perspective.

"I suffered two strokes six years apart, so every day after that I always thought ‘as long as I can open my eyes and see the ceiling or the sky'," he said. "Tonight, I can probably see the sky (through my ceiling) if I could sleep, but I can't."

Carlson and his family had been out most of the day when they finally got home to relax. 

Then suddenly, "kaboom."

"We just heard this big boom and the whole house shake and I was like - the neighbors had been talking about taking that tree down. I wish he had taken that tree down," he said.

Carlson was in good spirits considering the circumstances. When the tree came down, so did the power lines it was next to - creating an even more dangerous situation.

"We can see smoke billowing out the back side of the house and I’m like ‘there’s smoke. I can smell something'," he said. "Didn’t see the fire until we got outside and I’m glad we got outside."

Emergency crews were at the scene by the time the sun started going down. 

MORE: Funnel cloud seen over Lake St. Clair communities

As of 10 p.m. Thursday, more than 90,000 homes had lost power from a string of severe weather that contributed to hail the size of baseballs and a funnel cloud forming over Lake St. Clair.

It should be the end of severe weather for this week - though it will likely cause ripple effects for those caught in the way of the storm and now must contend with damage to their home or street.