Update, May 17: Meteorologists confirm that a tornado touched down in Baltimore.

Severe thunderstorms with intense winds rocked the Baltimore area early Friday evening, damaging buildings, uprooting trees and leaving tens of thousands of Baltimore Gas and Electric customers without power.

The National Weather Service briefly put the city and surrounding areas under a tornado warning until 6:15 p.m., and in Canton, where there was significant damage, some folks believe they experienced one.

Friday night, pieces of roof from the Merritt Clubs Canton were strewn across the parking lot that The Shops at Canton shares with Target and Harris Teeter. Yellow tape surrounded the plaza as lights from police cars and fire trucks flashed in the lot and along Boston Street.

Workers at 7-Eleven, Qdoba and PureLux Nail Salon & Spa, which are located in a mini strip across the street from the gym, said they had seen debris from the roof flying.

“The sky turned green. Our doors burst open. We saw a bunch of things flying in the sky,” said Austin Insisienmay, who works at PureLux. “We had to lock the doors because the wind was really strong.”

The sight was shocking and intriguing for Insisienmay and the salon’s clients, he said. But no one was really scared or worried, he added, especially because things sort of returned to normal about 15 to 20 minutes later.

The storms rolled through the metro area after 6 p.m., causing gray skies to suddenly go dark and people to take shelter, including at a Target store in Canton.

The National Weather Service was warning of wind gusts of up to 70 mph.

WJZ reported that the tornado warning was extended for the Dundalk and Edgemere area until 6:30 p.m., though the sun was poking through the clouds in South Baltimore by that time. The Orioles-Nationals game and racing at Pimlico were briefly delayed.

In Canton, Banner staffers observed that the Merritt Club had sustained severe damage, with part of the roof sheered off.

A store employee reached by phone confirmed the weather event and said the gym was closing. The employee said it appeared to be a tornado. “We saw it,” the worker said.

Two trees had been uprooted at Canton Waterfront Park, and downed trees were seen along Boston Street.

Social media users also posted about an uprooted tree in Federal Hill and overturned tractor-trailers at a lot on Holabird Avenue.

A National Weather Service spokesperson said it didn’t have confirmation of a tornado event on the ground, just a rotating wall of clouds, heavy rains and heavy winds.

Asked about reports of a possible tornado touching down in the city, NWS meteorologist Brian Lasorsa said: “We don’t know yet. We’re still getting damage reports. We don’t have anything confirmed at this point. We’ll see if there was a tornado.”

He said damage that is essentially circular in fashion generally indicates a tornado, versus damage all in one direction that might be from straight-line winds.

The weather service received reports of large hail in Hampstead, along with downed trees around the region and siding peeled from an apartment building in Catonsville.

Paul Christian, a Sparrows Point resident, told WJZ that whatever passed through sounded like a freight train. He saw items blowing toward his property, where there was damage to fencing.

“It was a scary situation, that’s for sure,” Christian said. “It was definitely a first-time experience for myself.”

Baltimore County Councilman Todd Crandell said emergency operations were activated.

“There has been some property damage but I am not aware of any injuries to civilians or personnel at this time,” he said in a text message.

He said authorities believe a tornado may have touched down at Merritt Boulevard and German Hill Road in Dundalk, in addition to near the Merritt Club in the city.

Fire Department personnel identified “structural damage in the area to a small number of homes and superficial damage to a larger number,” he added. Crews were working to manage the increased call volume.

BGE reported that, as of 9:15 p.m., more than 59,000 customers were without power across Central Maryland. That adds up to 774 restoration jobs. Crews had restored service to more than 10,000 customers.

BGE said the hardest-hit areas are in Howard, Carroll and Baltimore counties, along with the city of Baltimore.

“Severe storms on Friday, May 16, damaged electric equipment throughout BGE’s service area,” the utility said in a statement. “BGE crews are working to restore power for customers as quickly and safely as possible.”

The stormy weather led to delays of as long as 40 minutes on MARC’s Brunswick Line departing from Washington, D.C., officials said on social media.

At a briefing Friday night, Mayor Brandon Scott expressed gratitude to firefighters for being the first to respond and for keeping residents safe amid the storm’s fallout.

Baltimore Fire Chief James Wallace said his department got calls about building damage in the 3400 block of Boston Street around 6 p.m. and quickly responded. They are assessing damage at Merritt Clubs Canton, Canton Crossing and Canton Waterfront Park. No injuries have been reported, Wallace said, but there is a significant amount of damage.

Baltimore Police, the Office of Emergency Management and the departments of Public Works and Housing and Community Development are among those aiding in the response, officials said.

In Baltimore County, police and fire officials and BGE were in Dundalk assessing the impact of the storm, according to a statement posted to X.

The National Weather Service was predicting more showers and thunderstorms overnight, “with damaging wind gusts and large hail as possible hazard types.”

Paul Mancano, Kaitlin Newman, Rona Kobell, Norman Gomlak and WJZ contributed to this article.