By MICHELLE FRIEDRICH
Staff Writer
Little damage was reported after a fast-moving thunderstorm producing high winds and large hail moved through Butler County Tuesday afternoon.
Between 4 and 6 p.m., "we were concerned because there were some pretty scary looking storms, but we were fortunate not to have anything, a tornado, in our area or anything touch down at all," said Butler County Emergency Management Agency Director Robbie Myers.
The county's storm sirens were activated after the National Weather Service issued a tornado warning based on "what they were seeing from the radar up high," Myers explained. "There were no reports of a tornado. They were seeing rotation on the radar."
Myers said there were different parts of the storm, which hit throughout the county.
"We had lots of wind (and) very large hail at different places in the county," said Myers, who indicated some of the hail stones were silver-dollar size. "(We) did get some wind report damages where a tree went down in South Poplar Bluff.
"For the most part, it was the wind and hail ... It looks like Butler County got through it safely from all the reports we have."
According to Myers, the storm began moving through Butler County "during the 4 o'clock hour."
The Poplar Bluff Severe Weather Response Team, Myers said, participated in a conference call with National Weather Service officials prior to the storm hitting.
"We met at 3 p.m. at my office to come up with a gameplan on where we were going to deploy everyone," Myers explained. "We had every corner, all areas of the county, (someone) watching the sky for us" as the storm came in.
Nearly an inch of rain fell within about an hour Tuesday.
"It was very fast moving; well before 6 o'clock it was all through" the county, said Myers.