Two state fatalities following storm

The Sunday storms that swept across the Lower Peninsula Sunday have claimed at least two lives. A 21-year-old Ingham County man died when a tree fell while he was driving. Investigators say the tree either fell in front of, or onto his car in Ingham County. The victim, Ryan Ellen Rickman of Leslie, was driving northbound when the heavy winds caused a large tree to fall. He was the only one in the car and died on scene due to injuries from the crash. In Shiawassee County, sheriff’s deputies say 59-year-old Philip Daniel Smith of Perry was found dead and entangled in high voltage power wires after going outside late Sunday to investigate a noise. In the meantime, a teen in Detroit is in critical condition after touching power lines that were on the ground due to storms on Sunday. WXYZ-TV in Detroit reports that the victims friends say they were walking home after they were told school was canceled. The victim reached up and touched a downed power line, causing his injury. He is reportedly in critical condition at a local hospital.  (MRN)