A tornado warning covering Chicago, Naperville, and Cicero went into effect Tuesday morning, expiring at 11:15 a.m. CDT, as a fast-moving line of storms packing wind gusts potentially exceeding 80 mph tore across the region. The alert, issued by the National Weather Service Chicago and based on radar indications of a tornado, put an estimated 3,440,218 people, 804 schools, and 59 hospitals inside its potential exposure zone.
Mayor Brandon Johnson amplified the warning to his followers, retweeting the National Weather Service Chicago alert from his account, according to a post shared by Mayor Brandon Johnson. The warning’s coverage map stretched far beyond the city itself, listing communities including Naperville and Cicero alongside suburbs such as Wauconda, Mundelein, Lake Forest, Evanston, Schaumburg, Oak Lawn, and Joliet. The bulletin noted that hail was possible in size but not expected with this particular system.
A Storm Line Moving Fast, With Rain Rates Up to 3 Inches an Hour
The system behind Tuesday’s warning was moving east at 48 to 55 mph, with the potential for wind gusts topping 80 mph and torrential rain falling at rates of 2 to 3 inches per hour, according to Desplaines Valley News. That kind of speed and intensity means straight-line winds alone can inflict damage comparable to an EF-0 tornado across a wide swath of the metro area, even without a confirmed touchdown.
Utility crews were already positioned ahead of the storm. ComEd prepositioned response crews and contractors across northern Illinois Tuesday, a step taken after prior summer storms this season caused localized power outages and left downed trees scattered across Chicago neighborhoods, per WTTW News. Saturated ground from previous rainfall raises the odds that high winds could uproot trees and take down distribution lines with them, the outlet reported…