Authors: Melissa Perez Winder, Ed White, and Jim Salter
CHICAGO (AP) — Hundreds of people in a southern Illinois town were ordered to evacuate Tuesday as floodwaters crested a dam, just one dangerous result of severe weather that battered the Midwest overnight with steady rain and A tornado hits Chicago.
Hundreds of thousands were without power, and even weather forecasters had to briefly make emergency calls for help. An Indiana woman died Monday night when a tree fell on a home.
Mihajlo Jevdosic, 16, of Norwich, Illinois, said: “We heard a gust of wind coming, and it picked up very quickly, and we decided – my uncle decided – They all took shelter in the basement. “When we got into the basement, we heard a loud noise and the tree fell on the house. “
A dam near Nashville, Illinois, was flooded, and first responders spread out to make sure everyone escaped safely. Alex Haglund, a spokesman for the Washington County Emergency Management Agency, said there were no reports of injuries in the community of 3,000 people southeast of St. Louis, but one woman said water was up to her waist in her home.
Officials said earlier that about 300 people were in evacuation areas near the city's reservoirs. Other areas of Nashville were not in imminent danger from the dam breach, but flash flooding on roads raised concerns about water rescues.
The office manager of Zapp's Repair in Nashville said 10 vehicles were stranded at the auto shop. A dumpster behind the store drifted down Highway 15.
“I can tell you there was 3 feet of water in the office,” Delsakin said. “I was planning on moving some vehicles, but I couldn't find the keys in the flood. … The owner has been there for over 30 years and has never seen water in the store.
The National Weather Service said 5 to 7 inches (12.7 to 17.8 centimeters) of rain fell in eight hours. Heavy rain is also expected. A long section of Interstate 64 is closed in the Nashville area.
The 89-year-old dam was last inspected in 2021 and is classified as a “high hazard” dam, meaning a failure could kill at least one person, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The status of the dam is not available in online data.
Employees at suburban weather service offices had to hand over reporting duties to The Michigan Post for five minutes Monday night as a storm rolled through the Chicago area. The agency reported wind speeds of up to 75 mph (120 kph) in the area.
“We do have an area of rotation,” said meteorologist Zachary Yack, referring to the extremely rotating wall clouds. “It developed right near our offices in Romeoville, Illinois. … We went for cover. We have safe havens here.
A 44-year-old woman died in Cedar Lake, Indiana, on the southern edge of the Chicago area, the Lake County Coroner's Office said.
The weather service confirmed a tornado struck Des Moines, Iowa, as storms continued Monday afternoon into the night. Police responded to a call saying the power pole was broken in two.
The storm then moved east into northern Illinois and the Chicago area, prompting tornado warnings and heavy rain. The weather service said it was sending teams from Illinois and Indiana to inspect 29 damaged paths for evidence of tornado damage.
Carol Gillette said she heard a crash “like a bomb” in Oswego, Illinois, as trees smashed through cars and homes.
“I haven't called the insurance company yet. I don't know where to start,” Gillette told WBBM-TV.
As of midday, 215,000 customers in Illinois were without power, according to PowerOutage.us, although the number was much higher a few hours earlier. Chicago's O'Hare and Midway airports reported dozens of flight cancellations Tuesday morning.
The Chicago Fire Department said on social media site
The storm also knocked out power to thousands of people in Ohio and Pennsylvania and caused damage to property, trees and power lines. No injuries were reported.
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White reported from Detroit and Salter reported from O'Fallon, Missouri. Associated Press writers Teresa Crawford in Norwich, Illinois; AP Data Editor Angeliki Kastanis in Los Angeles contributed to this report.
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