A severe storm left its’ impact on the city of Manitowoc early Thursday evening. The fast moving storm, containing hail as large as golf and tennis balls, hit the area just before 6:00 p.m., damaging homes and vehicles throughout the city. Police said numerous car windshields were damaged, particularly on the south side, and there were reports of holes in residential vinyl siding. Police spokesman, Lieutenant Craig Jansen, said two of the department’s brand new squad cars received significant hail damage, as did many officers’ personal vehicles. At least one business, a Bank One branch on Custer Street, was closed due to damage.
Street flooding that led to stalled cars at intersections also was a problem, especially on Waldo boulevard on the city’s north side. Police spokesman, Lieutenant Craig Jansen, said there are many tree limbs down, but that residents did a good job of removing debris from storm sewer grates. The only power outage was a brief one in the Two Rivers, where a resident reported around 3 inches of water in his rain gauge. There was no hail damage in that community. A north side Manitowoc location measured 2.2 inches of rain in the ‘gauge, once the storm moved out across Lake Michigan.
Damon Ryan, WOMT
