Storms blow down trees but bring needed rain to Kentucky

A weather front sweeping through Kentucky on Tuesday afternoon produced high winds that knocked down trees and limbs in some counties, damaging a house in Lexington but also bringing badly needed rain.

The storm hit the Lexington area about 1:30 p.m., and about an inch of rain fell during the day, according to the National Weather Service. Louisville also got about an inch of rain.

High winds just ahead of the storm were reported at 56 mph in Lexington and at 52 mph in Winchester.

A tree fell on a house on State Street in Lexington near the University of Kentucky campus about 1:45 p.m., damaging an exterior stairway at the rear of the building. Lexington firefighters used a ladder to reach the upper level and evacuate some students who were living there. No injuries were reported.

WLEX-TV reported that one of its viewers photographed a possible tornado in Scott County about 1 p.m. But the weather service said the sighting had not been confirmed.

Henry Clay High School, Garden Springs Elementary School and Morton Middle School briefly lost electrical power. Lee County Schools dismissed classes early in anticipation of the storms.

Emergency dispatchers in Madison County said the stormy weather dropped trees on some roads there and might have contributed to a wreck in the Duncannon area that closed U.S. 25 for about an hour.

Trees also were reported downed in Woodford County; on the roadway between Versailles and Midway, and in Lebanon, the weather service said.

The fast-moving weather front prompted watches and warnings for most of the state, including a severe thunderstorm warning for Fayette County and parts of Bourbon, Jessamine, Harrison and Mercer counties. There also was a tornado warning for Anderson County and parts of Woodford and Franklin counties.

The rains were expected to end early Tuesday night, weather forecasters said, with sunny, breezy weather and high temperatures of about 70 degrees predicted for Wednesday.

This story was originally published October 27, 2010 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Storms blow down trees but bring needed rain to Kentucky."