The National Weather Service confirms two tornadoes touched down in the northeastern part of Starke County last week. Another pair of tornadoes was also confirmed in LaPorte County in the early morning hours of Tuesday, July 1. All four were EF-1, packing wind speeds of between 95 and 105 miles-per-hour.
In Starke County, the first funnel cloud touched down north of 300 East and east of 800 North and cut a five-mile long, 400 yard wide path east toward Koontz Lake. During the three minutes the tornado was on the ground, it destroyed a barn and flipped multiple center pivot irrigation systems. The second Starke County tornado touched down just east of 850 East and just north of 800 North. It traveled east-northeast and damaged several hardwood trees north of Koontz Lake along the Starke-Marshall County line. Several homes in the area also sustained minor structural damage before the funnel cloud lifted back up in Marshall County.
The confirmed tornadoes in LaPorte County also caused widespread damage. The first struck south of State Road 2 near Pinhook. It destroyed a two-story barn and damaged multiple structures. The second tornado traveled from east of Kingsford Heights to north of U.S. 6 before dissipating as it crossed the Kankakee River. They were among 11 tornadoes confirmed in northern Indiana as a result of the storms.
