Storms spew funnel clouds, flash floods

? A wave of severe storms crashed through the Midwest Tuesday, forcing residents in central Indiana to flee their homes because of rising floodwaters and frantically ease the pressure on an earthen dam before a new band of storms came rumbling through.

In several states, residents took advantage of a brief break from severe weather Tuesday afternoon to clean up from tornadoes and flash floods. Twenty-five homes were destroyed and at least a hundred more damaged in Wisconsin, while 26 families in Illinois were homeless after strong winds tore a roof off an apartment complex.

The storms that pelted the region weakened as they moved east, but the National Weather Service said another wave was expected to hit Iowa, Illinois and Indiana on Tuesday night. Enough moisture remained in the air that if storms developed in the heat, they would likely be downpours, said Jason Puma, a weather service meteorologist in Indianapolis.