Science & Nature
Streets and San Chief: We’ll Be Out All Weekend Clearing Trees Downed in Chicago Storms
A tree at Wilson Avenue and Marine Drive was completely uprooted during Wednesday's storms. (Patty Wetli / WTTW News)
According to surveys conducted Friday by teams from the National Weather Service, preliminary results seem to indicate at least two EF-3 tornadoes — which pack winds between 136 and 165 miles per hour —touched down Thursday in northeast Illinois and northwest Indiana. Damage also indicates two EF-1 tornadoes hit as well, with a wind range between 86 and 110 miles per hour.
Meanwhile, recovery efforts continue in Chicago from the derecho that walloped the city on Wednesday. Derechos are long-lasting lines of thunderstorms that cover areas at least 250 miles long.
Even as forestry crews worked to clear thousands of trees and branches downed on Wednesday — with more than 5,000 tree emergencies reported — damaging straight-line winds moved through the southern metro area again Thursday.
During a news conference on Friday, Cole Stallard, commissioner of the Department of Streets and Sanitation, said crews had made steady progress clearing streets blocked with fallen trees, getting the number down to 200, but then Thursday’s storms pushed that tally up to 400.
The top priority is removing trees blocking streets, he said, adding, “We’re going to be out all weekend.”
Hampering some of that work are downed power lines entangled in the trees, as well as uprooted trees near gas lines, Stallard said. The department is coordinating with ComEd and Peoples Gas to safely address those issues, he said.
Chicagoans should continue to report tree damage to 311 or their alderperson’s office.
Officials in Cook County and the city of Chicago, in partnership with the Illinois Emergency Management Agency, are asking residents impacted by the storms to fill out a damage assessment survey. The information gathered will help determine whether local governments can pursue additional recovery assistance.
As of Friday afternoon, more than 45,000 customers in Chicago remained without power following Wednesday’s storm, which packed wind gusts of nearly 80 miles per hour.
ComEd said 400 additional support personnel were expected to arrive Friday to assist the 3,000 employees already working on restoration efforts.
Though portions of Cook and DuPage counties were under tornado warnings Thursday, the strongest line of twisters cut a swath well south of Chicago. The hardest hit areas include Streator, Ill., and Merrillville and Hebron, Ind., according to the National Weather Service.
Early assessments indicate EF-3 tornadoes in Streator and Kouts, Ind., according to the National Weather Service. Damage points to EF-1 tornadoes in Bartlett, Ill., and an area in Livingston County near Dwight, Ill.
Note: This article has been updated with new information from the National Weather Service and Chicago officials.
Contact Patty Wetli: [email protected]
