Tornadoes have killed at least 3 people in Ohio. Crews are searching for others

LAKEVIEW — Tornadoes tore through several central U.S. states, flattening homes and trailers in an RV park and killing at least three people, authorities said. Crews and cadaver dogs searched for more victims in the rubble Friday.

Thursday night's storms left trails of destruction across parts of Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana and Arkansas. About 40 people were injured and dozens of homes damaged in one Indiana community. Tornadoes were also suspected in Illinois and Missouri.

It appeared the worst hit was the Indian Lake area in Ohio's Logan County, northwest of Columbus, with the villages of Lakeview and Russells Point devastated. At least three people died, said Sheriff Randy Dodds.

Search crews went into neighborhoods that had been blocked by gas leaks and fallen trees overnight and made a second pass in areas that were checked in the darkness right after the storm, Dodds said.

"It's going to take a long time," he said, adding he wasn't aware of anybody unaccounted for. Earlier, the sheriff told NBC'S "Today" show that he expected more victims would be found.

In Lakeview, Sandy Smith was walking down the stairs with her cat to seek shelter in a laundry room with her family when the roof came down.

"A couple flashes of light, and then everything just peppered against the house," she said. Her husband then saw their garage blow away.

The storm sheared off the tops of homes and damaged a campground and laundromat, leaving twisted metal wrapped in the tops of trees. Snowplows cleared debris from roads.

The storm produced fires in some spots and draped power lines through home windows, said Amber Fagan, president of the local chamber of commerce.

Many of the homes in the area are used as summer cottages by people who come for fishing and boating.

Blaine Schmidt, 34, sifted through broken glass and splintered wood, looking for anything salvageable. He rescued a guitar. Most everything else, including his furniture and a crib, was destroyed. Toy dinosaurs were scattered in his lawn near the front of the house, which had been peeled open, exposing a couch that has been torn apart.

He heard tornado sirens moments before the storm hit Lakeview. He took shelter in his bathtub, using the shower curtain to protect him and his roommate from shattered glass. "I'm lucky to be alive," Schmidt said.

Weather officials had yet to confirm many of the tornadoes, but across the region, awestruck residents captured fun