tornado Update from July 15th Derecho Event

Additional Tornadoes Confirmed:

We have added 4 tornadoes to the count from last Monday's derecho:

🌪 West of Elmore: EF1, 105 mph

🌪 West of Dunlap: EF1, 105 mph

🌪 Southwest of Germantown Hills: EF1, 100 mph

🌪 Southeast of Germantown Hills: EF1, 100 mph

Tornado Update from Sunday and Monday (Friday, July 19)

Residents of the Chicago area are continuing to clean up after the storms that caused widespread damage earlier this week. The NWS has confirmed at least 11 tornadoes touched down, including at Chicago O'Hare Airport.

Significant damage was reported in Hodgkins, Indian Head Park, Countryside, and Elgin. Cleanup efforts are ongoing, with power restoration and debris removal as top priorities.

Communities are showing resilience, with neighbors helping each other through the aftermath. The sense of community and relief that no major injuries were reported is strong, as residents work together to rebuild and recover.

Continued Damage Assessments for the July 15th Derecho (7:48 PM CDT Thursday, July 18)

Good evening! Here is a summary of our findings from today for our continued damage assessments for the July 15th derecho:

• EF-0 tornado confirmed from Glen Ellyn to Lombard
• EF-0 tornado confirmed in Villa Park
• EF-1 tornado confirmed near Grant Park
• Cedar Lake to Crown Point tornado track extended through Valparaiso
• Preliminary tracks determined for the previously confirmed southern Winnebago County, Manteno, and Peotone tornadoes
• Strong straight-line winds confirmed in Hanover Park, Bartlett, Lansing, and the remainder of southern Winnebago County

This brings our current tornado count for the July 15th derecho event up to 22 (tied for the daily record in our forecast area), and brings the July 14-15 2-day total up to 28. There will be more to come as we continue our analysis of these events. We thank you for your continued patience.

Summary of Previous Updates

The National Weather Service confirmed Thursday that three additional tornadoes touched down in the Chicago area during Monday night's storms. The tornado total from the storms Sunday and Monday night is growing—with even more surveying underway.

The National Weather Service has now confirmed 18 tornadoes in Northern Illinois and Northwest Indiana between the storms Sunday and Monday night.

One of those 18 tornadoes cut a path through North Aurora. The tornado, which spun up in Sugar Grove, was an EF-0—the lowest ranking on the Enhanced Fujita Scale with 3-second gusts of 65 to 85 mph.

Nonetheless, it was the worst damage a team with decades of experience had ever seen. The team hit the streets in North Aurora after midnight Monday night, and were putting in overtime Wednesday.

The public works crew started at 7 a.m. and made multiple stops. They followed the same path as a now-confirmed EF-0 tornado Monday night.

Mary Evans of North Aurora said a 60-year-old sycamore tree came down on her home on the aptly-named Sycamore Lane. As of Wednesday, the tree was still lying on Evans' roof—having crushed the beams underneath.

Thank you for your continued cooperation and support as we work together to assess and recover from these severe weather events.