600,000 lose power in Chicago storms

Severe weather cut power to over half a million people in the Chicago area and northwestern Indiana as perilous thunderstorms and extreme wind gusts pummeled the region on Tuesday.

Tornado warning sirens howled as the skies darkened. All flights were temporarily stopped at Chicago’s two major airports, and officials warned about delays as the backlog was cleared. In Ohio, power outages swept the state capital region.

More than 600,000 customers lost electricity in Illinois and Indiana, according to poweroutage.us. Lake and Porter counties in Indiana and Will County, Illinois, south of Chicago, were especially hit hard. Farther east in Ohio, more than 166,000 customers were without power.

Photos from the Chicago area that were posted on social media showed flooded roads, trees tangled in power lines and homes with gashes in the roof.

There were numerous reports of wind gusts of 80 mph or more at personal weather stations.

“Total devastation. No roof,” said Kerry Hourigan, standing outside her home of 25 years in the Chicago suburb of Tinley Park, Illinois. “Stupid thing but my focus was I just bought a new barbecue grill, and I have no idea where that is. It’s disappeared.”

The National Weather Service bluntly warned earlier in the day: “These are dangerous storms!”

Officials in Columbus, Ohio, sent local government workers home early ahead of another round of storms. The library in Westerville, Ohio, closed after rain poured into the atrium.