Woodridge, IL tornado: Teen rescues brother, 6, as storm destroys second floor of home

Jessica D'Onofrio Image
Monday, June 21, 2021
Teen saves brother as tornado destroys Woodridge home
As a tornado tore through the village of Woodridge, Nathan Casey rushed to save his 6-year-old brother trapped inside his bedroom.

WOODRIDGE, Ill. (WLS) -- As a tornado landed in the western suburbs Sunday night causing extensive damage and some injuries, a Woodridge teen came to the rescue of his six-year-old brother.

The tornado ripped off the roof of Casey's home on Woodridge Drive, leaving their second floor exposed.

Tornado touches down in DuPage County, with damage reported in Woodridge, Naperville

Tornado touchdown reported in DuPage (1 of 35)

The family of five managed to make it out uninjured and 16-year-old Nathan Casey came to the rescue of his younger brother.

"I got out of my room because I was like 'Oh, somebody fell upstairs' and I saw that there was no roof and I heard my brother crying for help so I ran upstairs, broke down the door and got him out and I got everybody downstairs, grabbed all of my scouting gear and stuff like that," Nathan Casey said

The tornado ripped the roof off of Nathan's home leaving the second floor exposed. His mother Bridget and his two other siblings took cover in the downstairs bathroom.

"It all happened so fast, it was kind of like a 'whoosh,'" Bridget Casey said.

She said some of her kids were able to grab photo albums and when firefighters arrived, they checked the debris to find her husband's ashes.

A Woodridge homeowner said a firefighter was able to recover her husband's ashes from the rubble of her home after it was hit by a tornado Sunday night.

A firefighter went up there and he actually found him, " Casey said.