NOTE: Severe weather alerts for the Chicago area can be found below. Check here for the latest alerts for your area.
Nearly 300,000 ComEd customers in the Chicago area were without power as of 10:30 p.m. Monday as a dangerous line of storms prompted widespread tornado watches and warnings.
ComEd reported through its outage map that 281,254 customers were without power Monday night.
Nearly 1,000 power outages were reported in Cook County due to the severe storm, which prompted numerous reports of tornadoes and straight-line wind gusts exceeding 65 mph.
“We are seeing power flashes on webcams at both O'Hare and Midway Airports due to the potential for tornadoes and/or damaging wind gusts near these areas,” the National Weather Service wrote on X. “Continue to take this seriously. These warnings!
The outages come as the National Weather Service urges Chicago-area residents to take shelter from dangerous storms.
“Attention! Everyone in the Chicago metro needs to monitor these storms closely!!” the National Weather Service wrote on X.
On Monday night, ground operations at O'Hare International Airport were halted, and Metra trains on multiple lines were also suspended as severe weather and wind gusts of more than 80 miles per hour hit the Chicago area.
Flights to and from O'Hare Airport were grounded due to thunderstorms, according to the Federal Aviation Commission.
According to Metra, UPW inbound and outbound trains were suspended near West Chicago and UPNW inbound and outbound trains were suspended near Woodstock, all due to high wind warnings.
“Expect significant delays. Metra will provide updates as information becomes available,” the service said on social media.
The entire region was under a tornado watch early Monday night, with tornado warnings issued for Kane, McHenry and DuPage counties. The warning is in effect until 1 a.m. Central Time, with tornado and severe thunderstorm warnings also issued for the area.
Storms moving into parts of the region were reportedly “capable of producing golf ball-sized hail and winds reaching 60 mph.”
Just before the warning was issued, the National Weather Service warned that a “damaging storm group” was moving into northwestern Illinois.
“There are multiple ways to receive warnings tonight, so be prepared to seek shelter if a warning is received in your area,” the agency posted on X.
The Chicago area has been upgraded to a moderate risk for severe weather as the threat of damaging storms intensifies ahead of the system's arrival.
Moderate risk is level four out of five. Previously, the region had been at an “enhanced” risk, level three out of five.
The National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center said, “Severe thunderstorms are expected to develop tonight across parts of the Midwest, the central High Plains, the lower Great Lakes and Arizona. The greatest potential for strong gusty winds is from eastern Iowa to Illinois and Indiana. state.
Winds could reach 85 mph, with widespread gusts in excess of 60 mph expected.
