Deadly storms batter US midwest

At least 14 people have died after storms tore through the midwestern US.

Tornadoes and thunderstorms killing at least seven in Ohio and triggered the automatic shutdown of a nuclear power plant in Michigan.

In northwest Ohio, seven people were confirmed dead in mostly rural Lake Township south of Toledo. Tornadoes destroyed dozens of homes and heavily damaged the police headquarters and high school, authorities said.

A police spokesman said: "Windows were blown out of the buildings, buses overturned, the police department lost all of their vehicles except the ones that were occupied by officers."

Severe storms caused the automatic shutdown of the Fermi 2 nuclear power plant on the shore of Lake Erie in southeast Michigan after a key area of the plant lost its power feed.

A spokesman said safety systems at the plant were functioning and the plant was stable, although an exterior wall was damaged as the siding was ripped off.