Chicago Weather: 4 tornadoes touched down Friday in south suburbs; storm damage cleanup begins

ByStephanie Wade WLS logo
Sunday, July 30, 2023
Strong storms cause damage, knock out power to thousands
Severe weather caused damage across the north and northwest suburbs in the Chicagoland area Friday into Saturday morning.

CHICAGO (WLS) -- Severe weather caused damage across the north and northwest suburbs in the Chicagoland area Friday into Saturday morning.

The National Weather Service said they have confirmed four tornadoes in the south suburbs from Friday night.

In Kankakee County, an EF-0 tornado touched down on the west side of Kankakee, and an EF-1 tornado touched down in the town of Momence.

In Will County, an EF-1 tornado touched down from Minooka to Shorewood and an EF-0 tornado touched down from central Minooka to the Des Plaines River.

Officials are still doing survey work in Kendall and Grundy counties.

"We've gotten some downpours this summer but nothing like this," said Jeff Mayburn who lives in Morton Grove.

Morton Grove police and fire officials responded to a large tree that fell onto a home in the 5500 block of Lake Street.

The homeowners said they were coming home dinner when they saw the fallen tree.

"We were shocked, we came out and we said what is this because we didn't have a clue," said Murad Gulwani. "I started calling the village so they can help us out."

Gulwani said the tree hit the roof and front bedroom but they're still trying to assess the damage.

RELATED: Large fire erupts at Oakbrook Terrace apartment complex during overnight storms

Meanwhile, more than 7,000 customers across the Chicago area are still without power.

"I woke up and the clocks weren't on and I can't put the TV on. My Wi-Fi was out," said Maybrun.

The storms are also affecting Chicago's airports. At O'Hare, at least 171 flights were cancelled Saturday. The airport is also seeing delays averaging about 18 minutes.

At Midway 6 flights have been canceled so far. Delays there are averaging less than 15 minutes.

In Bartlett, the storm arrived with sheets of rain, fierce winds and lightning, catching some folks off guard.

"Absolutely crazy. I mean, luckily I've been able to be inside but watching it roll through. Got dark, lots of awesome lightning, some big boomers," said resident Jessica Barber.

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