1 dead as tornadoes and severe storms again batter central US
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By Meteorologists Mary Gilbert, Chris Dolce, CNN
(CNN) — Another barrage of severe thunderstorms barreled through parts of the central US Thursday, including areas that had endured hurricane-force wind gusts, tornadoes and hail in recent days.
Storms with 70 to 90 mph wind gusts hit Iowa Thursday morning in the first of two rounds expected on the day. The storms killed a 54-year old man after he was struck by a tree in Des Moines, Iowa, according to a city police news release. The tree broke apart and fell in a homeless encampment as storms moved through the city. The police are working to confirm the man’s identity.
The second round of severe storms fired up late in the afternoon and continued into the evening, producing tornadoes in the Midwest. There were over a dozen tornado reports Thursday, nearly all in Illinois and Indiana. A tornado emergency, the highest-level tornado warning, was issued at 5:11 p.m. CT for Marshall County, in north central Illinois.
About 30 miles east, emergency crews were assessing damage in the city of Streator, Illinois, after a tornado moved through the area Thursday evening. Drone video shows significant damage to multiple houses, some with their roofs entirely torn off.
Video taken by a photojournalist walking through the city shows a man being rescued from a leveled home.
“I think his leg is broken,” a woman is heard saying off camera as the photojournalist and police officers move debris to free the man.
At least four people were taken to a local hospital with minor injuries, Streator Mayor Tara Bedei told CNN.
“At this time, there are no reported fatalities, and we are incredibly grateful for the safety of our residents and the quick action of emergency personnel, both in Streator and regionally,” Bedei said in a statement.
A tornado was also reported farther south, near Ipava, Illinois, according to the Storm Prediction Center. Drone footage from the area appeared to capture a tornado ripping through a field of solar panels.
Tornadoes were also reported in multiple counties in the northwest of neighboring Indiana. The National Weather Service warned of a “confirmed large and extremely dangerous tornado” near the town of Hebron in Porter County around 8 p.m. Hours later officials said they were responding to calls and working to clear fallen trees from roadways, but there were no immediate reports of injuries.
About 15 miles north, a Catholic high school in Merrillville, Indiana, sustained heavy damage, but no one was injured as the campus was empty when the storm hit, Andrean High School said in a Facebook post. Classes are suspended and school officials asked community members to stay away while the full impact is assessed, pointing to “active power lines, downed trees, broken glass, significant roof damage, etc that make it unsafe.”
Two tornado watches were issued for more than 20 million people in parts of Iowa, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Michigan and Ohio. Chicago; South Bend and Fort Wayne, Indiana; Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo, Michigan; and Davenport, Iowa, were among the cities included.
The number of homes and businesses without power across the Midwest and Northeast soared to more than 650,000 late Thursday night as the storms made their way east, according to Poweroutage.us.
Thursday’s threat was the final salvo of an active stretch of storms that has produced over 1,000 reports of hail, damaging wind and tornadoes in the region since Sunday.
Damaging wind gusts of 75 mph or higher are possible into the early morning hours Friday in storms from the Midwest to Great Lakes. Winds this strong could easily damage trees and power lines and send debris flying through the air.
Some storms may still be active Friday morning as they push toward the Appalachians.
Widespread flood threat
The stormy pattern has also ramped up the flash flood risk, especially in the Midwest. A Level 2 of 4 risk of flooding rainfall was in place Thursday into Friday morning for parts of Illinois — including Chicago — Wisconsin, Indiana, Iowa, Missouri and Minnesota, according to the Weather Prediction Center.
Rainfall rates in Thursday’s storms were expected to reach 2 inches per hour at times. That’s more than enough to cause flooding issues, especially since additional rain would be falling on already wet ground. Urban and poor-drainage areas were also particularly susceptible to this torrential rain.
Widespread damage Wednesday
Wednesday was one of the three most active severe storm days of the year.
A potent line of storms with destructive winds over 80 mph swept across Wisconsin, Illinois and Michigan in the afternoon and evening, causing widespread damage and knocking out power to over 400,000 homes and businesses, according to PowerOutage.us.
More than 1,000 flights were delayed or canceled at Chicago-area airports, according to FlightAware.
The intense winds also partially tore off the roof of a Chicago-area apartment building, forcing residents to leave, according to NBC 5 Chicago.
Multiple tornadoes struck northern Missouri and southern Iowa when a second round of storms fired up late in the day.
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CNN’s Kate S. Petersen, Diego Mendoza and Rhea Mogul contributed to this story.
