A funnel cloud was reported in Warren County Friday evening by out-of-state storm chasers, but no damage was reported during the brief sighting. Warren County Emergency Management Director Mike Daniels said he was alerted about the tornado which briefly touched down and then disappeared. He was not sure of the tornado’s exact whereabouts, but said it was near Warrenton. “It momentarily came down and went back up,” Daniels told The Record. The fast-moving storm is believed to be the same weather system that produced tornados and caused considerable damage in St. Charles County north of New Melle and in St. Louis County near Lambert Airport. Warren County was spared from the brunt of the storm. The fast-moving storm exited the area quietly, though some large hail fell in the area. Some residents reported hail the size of golf or tennis balls. Warrenton Fire Chief Mike Owenby said firefighters found a piece of hail as big as a softball. More than a dozen homes were damaged north of New Melle where a tornado was reported to have touched down along Foristell Road. A tornado then ripped through neighborhoods around the airport, including Maryland Heights, Bridgeton, Berkeley, Ferguson and St. Ann. The destruction caused Lambert Airport to close, but it was reopened by Saturday evening for inbound flights. Departing flights began Sunday morning. The tornado peaked at an EF-4 level, second-highest on the Enhanced Fujita scale, packing winds of up to 200 mph, according to the National Weather Service. It was the most powerful twister in metro St. Louis since 1967. St. Louis County officials said Sunday that 2,700 buildings were damaged. Miraculously, nobody was killed or even seriously injured despite hundreds of homes being destroyed, roofs damaged and trees uprooted. Several Warrenton and Marthasville firefighters traveled to Maryland Heights to assist in the tornado’s aftermath as part of a regional task force. Warrenton Fire Chief Mike Owenby said firefighters departed around 10 p.m. and were joined by firefighters from Washington, Union, St. Clair and Boles. They returned home around 4 a.m. Saturday. Owenby said seeing the destruction up close was startling. “It was unreal,” he said. Though local damage from Friday’s storm was minimal, local insurance agents have been busy following up on claims following the hail. Scott Costello, of Tri-County Agency, said county residents should be aware of “fly by night companies” entering the area to perform work. The Better Business Bureau recommends that consumers ask contractors for local references and check with those customers to see whether they were satisfied with the work. The Associated Press contributed to this story.