kansas-city
The Kansas City area was on high alert Wednesday after a tornado touched down about 20 miles southeast of the city. Creative Commons

A tornado struck near Kansas City, Missouri, Wednesday night after severe weather prompted warnings across the area, putting many in the city on edge. Damage was reported in Unity Village and Lee’s Summit just southeast of the Kansas City metropolitan area after a tornado ripped through a strip mall, according to KCTV-5.

The tornado briefly touched down on North Douglas Street in Lee’s Summit around 8:10 p.m. CDT, tearing off part of a roof and damaging another building. Several trees and gas pipes were yanked from the ground, according to local reports. "It sounded like a freight train," Lauretta Kellogg, who was in the building whose roof was torn off, told KCTV-5. "It only lasted maybe 30 seconds or less." Several cars that were parked nearby had their windows blown out by flying debris.

About 4,000 customers were without electricity Wednesday night as the storm system brought high winds and heavy rains. Social media users took to Twitter to post photos of the darkened sky that had some people worried about the potential for more tornadoes.

Meteorologist Ryan Hanrahan posted video of the tornado in Lee’s Summit to his Facebook page.

Wow! Take a look at this incredible video from this evening in Kansas City after a tornado touched down!

Posted by Meteorologist Ryan Hanrahan on Wednesday, July 1, 2015

Officials said there were no reports of injuries, according to the Kansas City Star. “It was scary,” Felicia LaBelle of Whiteman Air Force Base told the Star. “But everyone’s OK. That’s what matters.”

Weather officials said the area was under tornado watch until midnight.