Tornado kills 2, destroys homes in Illinois town
Crews embarked on detailed searches for missing residents Friday after at least one tornado brought chaos to Fairdale, a town of 150 people, around 7 p.m. the night before.
Residents reported the skies blackening and windows exploding as the severe weather struck. Crews combed through each structure twice into the evening hours and searched again by equipment and by hand Friday morning. The second person killed had initially been reported missing and her body was found Friday morning, Rauner said. Most other injuries were minor.
Photos: Tornadoes rip through Quad Cities
“We hope and pray that that is all the fatalities,” Rauner said. “We are very blessed that more people were not hurt. This was a devastating storm.”
The two people killed were identified as Jacklyn K. Klosa, 69, and Geraldine M. Schultz, 67.
About 15 to 20 homes were destroyed in Fairdale, according to DeKalb County Sheriff Roger A. Scott. Matthew Knott, division chief for the Rockford Fire Department, told The Associated Press that just about every building in the town about 80 miles from Chicago “sustained damage of some sort.”
All homes were evacuated as a safety precaution and power was out across the area. The Red Cross and Salvation Army established a shelter at a local high school. Trees, power lines and debris lay strewn on the ground. Some homes in the rural farming village were barely standing and many had shifted from their foundations. Roofs were missing. Metal siding from barns was wrapped around trees.
Residents gathered at a roadblock a mile from town Friday morning, eager to check the damage to their homes. Police, though, refused entry, saying it was too dangerous.
Resident Al Zammuto, a 60-year-old machinist, said he and other residents received cellphone alerts at 6:45 p.m., but he dismissed it as previous warnings hadn’t amounted to anything.
Then his windows exploded.
He took cover as the severe weather struck. Bricks were torn off the side of his home. Minutes later he stepped outside and couldn’t believe his eyes. He said the town looked trashed “looked like a landfill” and the sounds were haunting.
“People were screaming and yelling,” he said. “People were in total shock.”
National Weather Service meteorologist Matt Friedlein said at least two tornadoes swept through six north-central Illinois counties, and that damage survey teams would visit the area to determine how long they stayed on the ground, their strength and the extent of the damage.
After raking Illinois, Thursday’s storm and cold front headed northeast, dumping snow in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and sweeping across the Ohio Valley overnight, Friedlein said. The system was headed into the Appalachian region Friday with the potential for severe thunderstorms but “not anywhere near the threat” that it packed in the Midwest, he said.
Roughly 30 homes were damaged or destroyed in Ogle County, adjacent to DeKalb, Sheriff Brian VanVickle said, adding no deaths or significant injuries were reported there. He said 12 people had been trapped in the storm cellar beneath a restaurant that collapsed in the storm in Rochelle, about 20 miles southwest of Fairdale.
One of those rescued from the Grubsteakers restaurant, Raymond Kramer, 81, told Chicago’s WLS-TV they were trapped for 90 minutes before emergency crews were able to rescue them, unscathed.
“No sooner did we get down there, when it hit the building and laid a whole metal wall on top of the doors where we went into the storm cellar,” Kramer said. “When the tornado hit, we all got a dust bath. Everyone in there got shattered with dust and debris falling out of the rafters.”
——
Tareen reported from Chicago. Associated Press writer Sara Burnett in Fairdale, and Herbert G. McCann, Don Babwin, Tammy Webber contributed to this report
Residents reported the skies blackening and windows exploding as the severe weather struck. Crews combed through each structure twice into the evening hours and searched again by equipment and by hand Friday morning. The second person killed had initially been reported missing and her body was found Friday morning, Rauner said. Most other injuries were minor.
Photos: Tornadoes rip through Quad Cities
“We hope and pray that that is all the fatalities,” Rauner said. “We are very blessed that more people were not hurt. This was a devastating storm.”
The two people killed were identified as Jacklyn K. Klosa, 69, and Geraldine M. Schultz, 67.
About 15 to 20 homes were destroyed in Fairdale, according to DeKalb County Sheriff Roger A. Scott. Matthew Knott, division chief for the Rockford Fire Department, told The Associated Press that just about every building in the town about 80 miles from Chicago “sustained damage of some sort.”
All homes were evacuated as a safety precaution and power was out across the area. The Red Cross and Salvation Army established a shelter at a local high school. Trees, power lines and debris lay strewn on the ground. Some homes in the rural farming village were barely standing and many had shifted from their foundations. Roofs were missing. Metal siding from barns was wrapped around trees.
Residents gathered at a roadblock a mile from town Friday morning, eager to check the damage to their homes. Police, though, refused entry, saying it was too dangerous.
Resident Al Zammuto, a 60-year-old machinist, said he and other residents received cellphone alerts at 6:45 p.m., but he dismissed it as previous warnings hadn’t amounted to anything.
Then his windows exploded.
He took cover as the severe weather struck. Bricks were torn off the side of his home. Minutes later he stepped outside and couldn’t believe his eyes. He said the town looked trashed “looked like a landfill” and the sounds were haunting.
“People were screaming and yelling,” he said. “People were in total shock.”
After raking Illinois, Thursday’s storm and cold front headed northeast, dumping snow in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and sweeping across the Ohio Valley overnight, Friedlein said. The system was headed into the Appalachian region Friday with the potential for severe thunderstorms but “not anywhere near the threat” that it packed in the Midwest, he said.
Roughly 30 homes were damaged or destroyed in Ogle County, adjacent to DeKalb, Sheriff Brian VanVickle said, adding no deaths or significant injuries were reported there. He said 12 people had been trapped in the storm cellar beneath a restaurant that collapsed in the storm in Rochelle, about 20 miles southwest of Fairdale.
One of those rescued from the Grubsteakers restaurant, Raymond Kramer, 81, told Chicago’s WLS-TV they were trapped for 90 minutes before emergency crews were able to rescue them, unscathed.
“No sooner did we get down there, when it hit the building and laid a whole metal wall on top of the doors where we went into the storm cellar,” Kramer said. “When the tornado hit, we all got a dust bath. Everyone in there got shattered with dust and debris falling out of the rafters.”
——
Tareen reported from Chicago. Associated Press writer Sara Burnett in Fairdale, and Herbert G. McCann, Don Babwin, Tammy Webber contributed to this report
Looking back on April 9th, 2015
Last Thursday was our first taste of severe weather for the season and it was a very eventful day. The event started with a deepening, fast moving low pressure system. This low pressure system was the driving force for converging and gusty surface winds that evening. There was a strong frontal boundary difference making way for backing winds near the boundary helping rotation. The surface was very moist with dew-points observed at Rochelle and Sterling reaching 66° at one point. This became a perfect setup for a large and dangerous tornado.
The night began with some scattered strong thunderstorms, but no Tornado Warnings were issued until 6:09 PM and that is when storms started to fire up all across the Northern Illinois region.
The first Tornado warning was for a radar signature of rotation just south of Cherry Valley. Soon after at 6:35 PM was the first issued Tornado Warning for a large wedge tornado near Ashton. Finally all tornado warnings had expired around 7:45 PM.
So far throughout the state of Illinois there have been 8 confirmed tornadoes. Four of these tornadoes were confirmed in the Stateline.
The strongest tornado being an EF-4 that tracked across Lee, Ogle, and DeKalb counties. This was the first EF-4 tornado on record in the Northern Illinois region since the community of Washington was struck by one in November of 2013. Wind speeds associated with this EF-4 Tornado were around 180-200 mph. This was the major tornado produced with this storm. There have been 2 fatalities confirmed with this tornado and more than 20 people injured. Structures in the small town of Fairdale, IL have been almost completely swept away.
The EF-4 was not the only tornado in the Stateline that was destructive. An EF-1 tornado with wind speeds up to 110 mph roared through areas just south of Belvidere. This EF-1 tornado first touched down near Flora Road where it impacted a zoo. Two zoo animals died as a result of the damage caused by the tornado.
Then there were the two EF-0 tornadoes that were south of Cherry Valley and just south of Lindenwood that had little to no damage associated with them.
Here is a graphic posted by the National Weather Service in Chicago of the tracks of the four tornadoes.
This photo can be found on their Facebook and I have posted the link below. Also, surveying has not been completed all the way yet by the National Weather Service and when they come out with their newest information we will be sure to pass that along to all of you!
– Nick Jansen
National Weather Service Facebook post:
https://www.facebook.com/NWSChicago/photos/a.170461579677551.41001.164132806977095/900816173308751/?type=1&theater
The night began with some scattered strong thunderstorms, but no Tornado Warnings were issued until 6:09 PM and that is when storms started to fire up all across the Northern Illinois region.
The first Tornado warning was for a radar signature of rotation just south of Cherry Valley. Soon after at 6:35 PM was the first issued Tornado Warning for a large wedge tornado near Ashton. Finally all tornado warnings had expired around 7:45 PM.
So far throughout the state of Illinois there have been 8 confirmed tornadoes. Four of these tornadoes were confirmed in the Stateline.
The strongest tornado being an EF-4 that tracked across Lee, Ogle, and DeKalb counties. This was the first EF-4 tornado on record in the Northern Illinois region since the community of Washington was struck by one in November of 2013. Wind speeds associated with this EF-4 Tornado were around 180-200 mph. This was the major tornado produced with this storm. There have been 2 fatalities confirmed with this tornado and more than 20 people injured. Structures in the small town of Fairdale, IL have been almost completely swept away.
The EF-4 was not the only tornado in the Stateline that was destructive. An EF-1 tornado with wind speeds up to 110 mph roared through areas just south of Belvidere. This EF-1 tornado first touched down near Flora Road where it impacted a zoo. Two zoo animals died as a result of the damage caused by the tornado.
Then there were the two EF-0 tornadoes that were south of Cherry Valley and just south of Lindenwood that had little to no damage associated with them.
Here is a graphic posted by the National Weather Service in Chicago of the tracks of the four tornadoes.
This photo can be found on their Facebook and I have posted the link below. Also, surveying has not been completed all the way yet by the National Weather Service and when they come out with their newest information we will be sure to pass that along to all of you!
– Nick Jansen
National Weather Service Facebook post:
https://www.facebook.com/NWSChicago/photos/a.170461579677551.41001.164132806977095/900816173308751/?type=1&theater
No comments:
Post a Comment
Comments made by some special people!