Severe storms caused tornado touchdown, flash flooding in NW Indiana

CHICAGO (WLS) -- A tornado touched down in northwest Indiana as part of a severe weather system that swept through the Chicago area and northwest Indiana Sunday evening.

The tornado was spotted two miles north of DeMotte in Jasper County in northwest Indiana by Eric Gibson, of Northwest Indiana Skywarn.

Severe thunderstorms brought torrential downpours, high winds and hail that caused flash flooding through northwest Indiana and property damage from several downed trees in Bradley, Ill., just west of Kankakee.

George Dagnan, who lives in Bradley, said winds blew up to 50 or 60 miles per hour.

"All of a sudden, I heard some booms," Dagnan said. "I couldn't figure out where they came from. We all walked outside and started looking around. There were tree limbs on the roof, tree limbs busted out and scattered all across the yard in front of the house."

Shaiden Jeffords, of Bradley, was at home when a large tree crashed through her house.

"I heard a huge bang," Jeffords said. "I went out in the living room to see the ceiling completely crashed. First thing I did, I went and made sure everything was okay. I know the living room is completely done."

Meanwhile, flash flooding affected several parts of northwest Indiana, particularly in and around Cedar Lake, where more than four inches of rain fell in less than an hour.

Some roads were barely passable Sunday night because of high water.

Brad Martin's Cedar Lake home and property were flooded Sunday - for the second time in about a year.

"We're just watching it come in from all four sides," Martin said. "Because there are no stormwater ditches in this neighborhood. We are the retention area. All you can think is, 'Is the house going to be destroyed this time? Is it not going to be destroyed?'"