MONTICELLO, Ind. — Monday's storms wreaked havoc throughout the region, including in Fulton County where a tree fell on a Monticello man's car, leaving him critically injured and trapped in his truck until first responders could get him free.
According to Indiana State Police, Hunter Smolek, 22, was driving a Ford F150 pickup truck south on State Road 25 at around 4:13 p.m.
At the time, a storm with heavy winds was passing across the state. The storm sparked severe thunderstorm watches and warnings in counties throughout the state and caused more than 400,000 utility customers in Indiana and Michigan to lose power.
Troopers say Smolek was driving through the storm when a tree from the west side of the road fell on top of his truck, trapping him.
Firefighters had to extricate Smolek. He was taken to a Lafayette hospital in critical condition, Indiana State Police said. At last check, troopers said Smolek was "talking and alert."
The Indiana Department of Transportation used a payloader to remove the tree from State Road 25.
The road was closed for approximately 2 1/2 hours.
Nearby Huntington County also had several trees that went down during the storms.
Drivers were being told to proceed with caution in the county as first responders worked to clear the roadways.
The storms caused damage across central Indiana, including in Russiaville and Eaton, where viewers shared photos of trees and limbs that had fallen during the storm.
PHOTOS: Storm damage in central Indiana on Monday, Aug. 29, 2022
