GASTON COUNTY, N.C. — A person was killed and another rescued after a tree fell on a vehicle during severe weather that included two tornadoes Wednesday afternoon in Gaston County, authorities said.

County officials declared a state of emergency Wednesday evening in the wake of a powerful storm that damaged buildings, toppled trees and took down power lines.

The National Weather Service on Thursday said two tornadoes touched down Wednesday afternoon in the Piedmont region — one that went from Polkville in Cleveland County to near Cherryville in Gaston County and another that traveled from the north side of Gastonia to Belmont. Both tornadoes were classified as EF1s, with winds up to 110 mph.

The American Red Cross has opened a shelter at 519 W. Franklin Blvd. in Gastonia to help those impacted by Wednesday's storms. 

While more than 39,000 customers in Gaston County and over 49,000 in Mecklenburg County were without electricity Wednesday evening, according to poweroutage.us, those numbers had dropped to about 9,000 in Gaston and 3,000 in Mecklenburg by early Friday morning.

The outages and debris caused by the storms forced many schools and districts across the area to close Thursday. Gaston County Schools said it was going to remain closed on Friday due to ongoing issues with power and internet issues.

One person was killed and another rescued by New Hope Fire Department responders after a tree fell on a vehicle, the county said. The survivor was taken to a hospital.

Related: PHOTOS: Strong storm leaves damage in Gaston County

The western part of Gaston County, Gastonia and other municipalities suffered extensive damage, the county stated.

“We’re working as quickly as we can to make sure our residents are safe and downed trees and debris is moved out of roadways so power crews can work on getting power restored,” Gaston County Board of Commissioners Chairman Chad Brown said.