Severe thunderstorms that prompted tornado warnings in Lake and McHenry counties Monday evening brought flooding and knocked down trees and power lines.
The National Weather Service (NWS) issued a severe thunderstorm warning for Lake County around 7:40 p.m. Monday and one for McHenry County around 8 p.m.
The weather service said severe thunderstorms were located in the area bringing 60 mph wind gusts and quarter size hail.
“Hail damage to vehicles is expected. Expect wind damage to roofs, siding, and trees,” the Lake County warning said.
“Expect considerable tree damage. Damage is likely to mobile homes, roofs, and outbuildings,” the McHenry County warning said.
The NWS issued a tornado warning for McHenry County at 8:30 p.m. and a tornado warning for Lake County at 9:15 p.m. after severe thunderstorms capable of producing a tornado were located in both Streamwood and Kingston.
Fire departments in both Lake and McHenry counties responded to wires down and trees down calls during the storms.
The Woodstock Fire/Rescue District reported around 9:30 p.m. that several trees and power lines came down across the roadway at Washington Street and Lamb Road.
The fire district asked motorists to avoid the area and said ComEd was working to resolve the situation.
The NWS said tree damage was also reported in an area north of Algonquin.
A large tree came down onto wires in Lindenhurst, the NWS said.
The Lake County Division of Transportation (LCDOT) said the heavy rainfall led to flood roadways in Lake County, resulting in several road closures.
“Remember, TURN AROUND, DON’T DROWN. Just 6 inches of moving water can knock you down, and 2 feet of water can sweep your vehicle away,” LCDOT said.
Sunset Road between Northwestern Avenue and Delany Road in Waukegan was closed; Route 132 east of O’Plaine Road in Gurnee at the underpass was closed; and the underpass on Route 41 west of Delany Road was closed.
Washington Street near Teske Boulevard in Park City was flooded but it is unclear if it was shut down or not.
LCDOT said Tuesday morning that roads in the county were “looking good” for the most part considering the intense rainfall.
“There will still be areas with some water on the pavement, and there may be a few signal outages,” LCDOT said.
The City of Highland Park reported around 11:30 p.m. that multiple roadways in the city were blocked off with barricades due to flooding. The city asked motorists to use caution while traveling.
The Village of Lincolnshire reported Londonderry Lane was closed from Lincolnshire Drive to 45 Londonderry Lane due to flooding.
The NWS announced they have sent six damage survey teams out to survey damage across northern Illinois and northwest Indiana.
“So far, we have 29 different paths of potential damage that we will be investigating today and in the coming days to identify potential tornado tracks,” the NWS said.
None of the 29 different paths were in Lake or McHenry counties.
As of 2:15 p.m. Tuesday, survey teams continued to work but were able to confirm at least an EF-1 tornado near Channahon; an EF-1 tornado on the Near West Side of Chicago to the far western portions of the Loop; an EF-1 tornado in the Bristol and Oswego areas; at least an EF-0 tornado in Justice and Bridgeview; and at least an EF-0 tornado near Crown Point, Indiana.
Over 200,000 ComEd customers in 30 counties had lost power as of 6:30 a.m. Tuesday. That number dropped to 145,000 as of 3:15 p.m. Tuesday.