Officials confirm 2 deaths in Michigan, raising toll from storms and tornadoes to 8

DETROIT – Officials have confirmed two storm-related deaths in Michigan, raising to eight the toll from the heavy rain, powerful winds and tornadoes that formed across the region.

Detroit police Officer Dan Donakowski says a 14-year-old boy was pronounced dead at a hospital after grabbing a downed power line Monday morning. He was walking home from a school that was closed due to power outages. Donakowski didn’t provide the boy’s name.

Jackson County Sheriff Steven Rand says 21-year-old Ryan Allan Rickman of Leslie died when his vehicle was crushed by a fallen tree Sunday evening.

A band of strong storms moved across the U.S. Midwest on Sunday, unleashing powerful winds that flattened homes and left cars, trees and belongings strewn across neighbourhoods. Officials say the storms also killed six people in Illinois.