PILOT GROVE, Mo. – A suspected tornado in Central Missouri caused significant damage to some 15 structures in violently spreading debris across the storm’s path.

Radar indicated strong rotation near the town shortly after 8:30 a.m. Wednesday.  And National Weather Service meteorologists surveyed the damage later in the day. 

A preliminary report on whether or not it was a tornado, which many local residents are saying it was, will be released Thursday or Friday.

FOX 2 toured the erratic path of the storm, which included several roofs blown off or heavily damaged and a giant metal silo that was carried several hundred yards into a cemetery. 

The silo appeared to have been thrown into multiple marble headstones, slicing them in half like a loaf of bread.

North of town, Jenny Lorenz’s house was left uninhabitable.

She told FOX 2 that she got a warning on her phone and decided to heed the warning, something she admits many people in Cooper County have become complacent about.

A split-second decision brought her out into the garage and over to a concrete-encased Storm shelter. 

Less than 15 seconds later, Lorenz said the power went out and she could tell something bad was happening.

When she came out of the shelter, part of the garage had blown off while the rest of the large garage space collapsed in on where Lorenz was standing seconds earlier. 

Only minor injuries were reported and most of Pilot Grove remained intact.