CAPE, JACKSON RESIDENTS LOSE POWER AMIDST HIGH WIND, HAIL

Strong storms cut off electricity in Cape Girardeau and pelted Jackson with golfball-size hail late Wednesday through early Thursday, authorities said.

About 1,000 customers in south Cape Girardeau lost power for about three hours when a tree struck a 12,000-volt line, said AmerenUE spokesman Michael Cleary.

During the storm's peak, between 12:30 a.m. and 2:30 a.m. Thursday, about 1,400 customers in Southeast Missouri lost electricity, he said.

Thunderstorms were strongest in the region from about 8 p.m. until midnight, said Kelly Hopper, a forecaster with the National Weather Service in Paducah, Ky.

Jackson police reported large hail in the vicinity of Center Junction, where Interstate 55 and Highway 61 meet.

Carports were dented, an electronic signboard at a car lot was damaged and billboards were sent sliding down a hill from Kohlfeld Distributing on Jackson Boulevard. An empty 48-foot box trailer at Kohlfeld's was blown around by the wind, police said.

"Our sensors were picking up winds at 47 miles per hour in Carbondale, so it's fair to say that it was probably similar in Jackson," Hopper said.