Severe storms kill 1, knock out power to 380,000 in Midwest

Severe storms ripped across the Midwest, killing one man, knocking out power to about 380,000 customers in Illinois and Indiana, and throwing Chicago-area airports into hours of delays and cancellations. The damage spread across several states, with tornadic winds, downed lines and damaged buildings underscoring how quickly a single outbreak can strain emergency response, transit systems and local utilities at the same time.

The death was reported in Des Moines, Iowa, where a 54-year-old man was struck by a tree that broke apart in strong storms, police said. The National Weather Service said it received more than a dozen tornado reports Wednesday across northern Missouri, Iowa, Kansas and Illinois, and later confirmed tornadoes in mostly rural areas southwest of Chicago. Damage was also reported in Streator, Illinois, and in Merrillville and Hebron, Indiana.

Power outages hit Illinois especially hard. By Friday morning, about 235,000 homes and businesses in the state were without electricity, including roughly 144,000 in Cook County alone. Across Illinois and Indiana, the total was about 380,000 customers, while earlier counts from PowerOutage.us showed more than 243,000 outages in Illinois. The outages left neighborhoods dark and added another layer of disruption for families already dealing with damaged roofs, blocked streets and fallen trees.

Air travel also faltered. More than a thousand flight delays or cancellations were reported at Chicago airports, and the ripple effects spread to other hubs, including Philadelphia and Newark, New Jersey. The Chicago area had been placed under a level 4 out of 5 severe weather risk, a rare designation that meteorologists said reflected the threat posed by the clash of cool air from Canada with warm, humid air surging north from the South. CBS News Chicago said it was the city’s first level 4 severe risk since July 15, 2024, when a record outbreak produced 32 tornado touchdowns.

In Streator, city hall served as a reunification center and the American Red Cross opened a shelter. Mayor Tara Bedei said there were no reported deaths there. In Merrillville, police warned residents to take cover as tornado damage left homes torn apart, trees and power lines down, streets blocked and part of a high school roof ripped off. The weather service said damage surveys would continue for several days as crews worked to determine how many tornadoes touched down and how strong they were. Additional severe weather was expected to develop across the central Plains and Midwest, extending a multiday pattern that had already battered parts of the Northeast and mid-Atlantic.