Science & Nature
Even the National Weather Service Had to Take Cover During Monday’s Wild Storms, Number of Tornadoes Still Being Tallied
(Chicago 311 / X)
The line of powerful storms that whipped through the Chicago region Monday night sent hundreds of thousands of people scrambling for shelter, including staff in the National Weather Service’s Chicago office.
The team, which was sending out alerts and warnings on social media, had to temporarily pass off duties to a forecast office in Michigan as tornado reports hit close to home.
Multiple tornado warnings were issued throughout the region, and the weather service has dispatched six damage survey teams to confirm how many tornadoes actually touched down Monday. Those teams are investigating 29 damage tracks in northern Illinois and northwest Indiana, the weather service reported Tuesday, and due to the large coverage area, it will likely take multiple days to complete their assessments.
High winds, including a gust of 75 miles per hour, were recorded at O’Hare International Airport, bringing trees crashing down and disrupting power.
As of Tuesday morning, ComEd reported nearly 200,000 customers affected by outages. The utility said 80% of outages would be resolved by Wednesday and the remainder by Friday, based on past experience with similar weather events.
A look at last night's derecho as it blew through @NIUlive and DeKalb at about 8:15 pm, complete with circulation that moved atop campus. @NIUwxcams @NWSChicago #ilwx pic.twitter.com/leUbqVMobc
— Walker Ashley (@WalkerSAshley) July 16, 2024
In Chicago, the Department of Streets and Sanitation’s forestry crews have been responding to nearly 2,400 emergency calls of downed trees and fallen limbs since Sunday. It’s unknown how many more trees may have sustained lesser damage. The department is asking Chicagoans to report fallen trees and debris to 311.
Close to 100 flights were canceled at O’Hare on Tuesday, but many passengers questioned why they were boarded onto flights Monday night as the powerful storm system approached — and then left on planes as the worst of the storm hit.
Our plane is sitting on the runway at Chicago O’Hare right now while everyone’s phones receive multiple tornado warnings.
Captain announced that air traffic control and ground control have evacuated.
Plane is shaking as it is blown back and forth by the wind @AmericanAir
— Courtney Mares (@catholicourtney) July 16, 2024
According to a spokesperson for the Chicago Department of Aviation, on Monday night both O’Hare and Midway airports promptly implemented their standard safety plans for tornado warnings, requiring all passengers and personnel to move away from windows and into any available underground locations.
As for decisions around aircraft movement and passengers onboard planes, the department pointed WTTW News to the Federal Aviation Administration for comment.
When reached and asked about passengers being boarded onto planes as tornadoes approached, the FAA told WTTW News to contact the Chicago Department of Aviation and individual airlines.
WTTW News sent requests for comment to United Airlines and American Airlines, but did not receive an immediate response.
Contact Patty Wetli: @pattywetli | (773) 509-5623 | [email protected]
