For nearly two hours, a series of watches and warnings were issued by the National Weather Service as the system moved through the area.
The storms left behind some damage in parts of Lake County, Ind., where WGN crews spotted uprooted trees that damaged nearby homes and sidewalks. The fallen trees were spotted in the 9400 block of Forrest Drive in Highland:
Residents in the area said everything seemed perfectly fine until things quickly got out of control, with the wild weather pulling trees out of the ground and leaving behind a path of destruction:
Highland resident Sheila Courtright said she was getting ready to move to the basement when a tree came crashing through the roof of her home. Several doors down, another tree uprooted and crashed into a home next door to resident Jessica Ramirez.
“It was like zero to 100 real quick,” Ramirez said.
Other parts of Highland also saw significant damage, including an area near 41st Street and O Day Drive.
In Gary, Ind., McCullough Academy, an elementary school, sustained significant damage, including parts of the roof that were blown off:
Back in Illinois, Steger — located in Cook and Will counties — also saw the impact of Wednesday’s severe storms. The violent winds uprooted trees and even pulled the roof off of a home near 35th Street, leaving it along the nearby railroad tracks:
The debris has since been cleared from the tracks. A video shared by a viewer shows the moment the roof was pulled from the home:
Longtime residents said they have never seen this kind of damage before. But they also said the neighbors rallied quickly to help each other out.
“It came up so quick, it was like a gust, and then it had a path, going straight northeast, from the southwest to the northeast,” retired firefighter Jim Piacentini said. “So it’s scary, you know?
“The neighbors got up and started helping, we got our street all cleaned up so traffic could get through it. It seems like that’s what I like in this town. Everybody gets together, comes out in need, and especially helps the seniors out.”
The round of strong storms that moved in around 4 p.m. pelted the region with heavy rain and hail that coated the ground, almost like snow:
Photos provided by viewer Joseph Carroll taken in downtown Manteno, just south of the fire station near Route 50, show a layer of small hailstones coating the ground:
The stones did not seem too large in size, however, and appeared to be just smaller than a quarter-inch wide.
Hail also fell in Plainfield, in Will County, on Wednesday afternoon. Will County was included in several Tornado Warnings that were issued.
Photos captured from a video that was provided by viewers Scott and Alice Raspolich show the falling hailstones collecting on the ground:
Out in Elgin, hailstones that fell on Wednesday afternoon grew to nearly a half-inch.
Viewer Chip Read shared a photo of one of the stones that fell near him after placing it next to a ruler to figure out its size:
The hailstones appeared to be a bit larger in parts of Cook County, including in Oak Lawn, where viewer Tina Garcia captured a photo of some that fell.
The photo shows a group of three hailstones, including one almost the size of a quarter:
As the storms made their way across Chicagoland, viewers around the area captured photos of the ominous skies.
Viewer Megan Morge shared a photo that she captured of a possible wall cloud spotted in Clinton.
Viewer Darren High captured another shot of the darkened sky as the storm passed over the Des Plaines River in Cicero:
Viewer Pete Tomczuk spotted a large shelf cloud out in west Joliet:
Out in West Chicago, some power poles along Prince Crossing Road were knocked down during the storm. In Channahon, a large tree fell onto the roadway near Cemetery Road and Hansel Road. The fallen tree blocked a portion of the roadway but was cleared by around 5:45 p.m. Wednesday.
The storms, which struck around during evening rush hour, caused some delays for travelers and commuters and caught some drivers off guard.
WGN-TV crews spotted an overturned UPS semi that had rolled over amid the storms, though it is unclear if anyone was injured:
WGN-TV crews spotted an overturned UPS semi that had rolled over amid the storms, though it is unclear if anyone was injured.
The storms had briefly led to ground stops at both of Chicago’s major airports, though they have both since been lifted. But even after the ground stop was lifted, travelers at O’Hare International Airport faced delays averaging nearly three hours on Wednesday night.
The strong winds also led to some delays for commuters taking Metra trains.
Full forecast details and more at the WGN Weather Center blog
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