UPDATED: NWS confirms tornado near Lynchburg; storm causes damage at LCHS

A tornado caused damage at the Lynchburg-Clay High School facility Wednesday afternoon, including downed trees and serious damage to the athletic complex.

Damage also included a broken light pole, garage door and fences, along with damage to the high school's ceiling tiles and roof.

The National Weather Service confirmed Wednesday night that an EF0 tornado with a path length of four miles touched down in the Lynchburg area at approximately 3:40 p.m. Dodsonville and Allensburg appear to have been in the tornado's path. The path width is unknown.

An EF0 tornado classification means that wind speeds range from 65 to 85 miles per hour, according to the National Weather Service.

Lynchburg Joint Fire and Ambulance District Chief David Manning said that it was reported by parents in the high school parking lot that a "rotation had dropped on the school." 

"The parents were very upset initially," Manning said. 

Captain Mike Morgan of the Lynchburg Joint Fire and Ambulance District, who arrived at the school shortly after the tornado hit, said that debris was flying in the air as he drove to the school.

Approximately 45 people were in the building when the storm hit, according to Manning.

Manning said that the department found no injuries upon their arrival and had begun to assess the damage to the building.

Lynchburg-Clay High School principal Linda Hatten said that the athletic complex appeared to have received the brunt of the damage, with bleachers scattered across the soccer, baseball and softball fields and damage to backstops and the batting cage.

"We took a major hit at the athletic complex," Lynchburg-Clay superintendent Shane Shope said.

After talking to the staff at the school, Shope said the storm "seemed to come on very quickly."

School was not in session, but the storm hit between the start of a volleyball practice and the conclusion of basketball camps, Lynchburg-Clay girls varsity basketball coach Whitney Lewis said. 

Lewis said that the camps had just let out, and some of the kids were starting to leave when the storm hit.

"I was in the gym, and the roof started shaking," Lewis said. "It sounded like a train." 

Lewis said that kids came running back inside the building and that some of them said there was damage to cars in the parking lot. 

Shope said that the coaches and supervisors sheltered the children at the school in the bathroom.

"We're very fortunate that there were no injuries and that everything that got damaged is replaceable," Shope said. "Thank God everyone is OK and no kids were hurt."

According to Manning, damage was also reported on US 50 east of Lynchburg, and trees were downed and blocking the roadway on US 50 and on state Route 134. Damage could also be seen in homes across the street from the school, including additional downed trees and a trampoline that had landed in a tree.

Responding agencies included the Lynchburg Area Joint Fire and EMS District, Fayetteville Fire Department, Highland County Sheriff's Office, Ohio State Highway Patrol and Highland County EMA, and supporting agencies included the Ohio Department of Transportation, South Central Electric Power, the Highland County Engineer’s Office and local Township Trustees, according to a joint press release from the Lynchburg-Clay School District, Lynchburg Joint Fire District and Highland County EMA.