Cleanup and power outages continue Saturday
By CRYSTAL LINDELL – clindell@nwherald.com and AMBER KROSEL – akrosel@nwherald.com
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| Cid Cabalum takes a picture of the damage to his house after the Friday night storm in Woodstock. (Lauren M. Anderson - landerson@nwherald.com) |
Communities are cleaning up today after battling two severe rounds of thunderstorms Friday night.
Many areas in McHenry County were flooded and still without power Saturday, with Woodstock among the hardest hit.
"I think the streets situation has gotten markedly better, but there are still some people with flooded homes," said Chad Peterson, a dispatcher with Woodstock Police.
Workers at Black Diamond Plumbing and Electric were swamped with calls throughout the night, the majority coming from that region.
"Their power just came on this morning," said Dave Growney, a partner with the Crystal Lake-based business. "We've been going out there trying to bring generators and of course the sump pumps."
Meanwhile, about 4,300 Commonwealth Edison customers are still without power in the northern service region, which includes McHenry County. System-wide, about 11,000 were without power Saturday night.
Most should expect to see their power restored by noon Sunday, ComEd spokesman Bennie Currie said. Residents can report any electrical emergencies by calling 1-800-EDISON-1.
"There's lots of storm damage out there," Currie said. "You should never approach a down power line. Always assume they are energized because they are dangerous. People should be checking on those who are home bound and seniors to make sure they are safe."
Overall, a total of 121,000 ComEd customers lost power as a result of the storms.
The Fox Waterway Agency also announced Saturday that they've placed a no-wake restriction on the lower Fox River from the Stratton Lock and Dam to Algonquin because of rising water.
Joe Fisher, a Woodstock resident, witnessed one of the many power lines that went down Friday.
He said he was driving west on Route 14 when he saw a line go down near the Culver’s in Woodstock.
“I had only seen that on TV before,” he said. “It was pretty shocking. I had never seen an electrical fire just go as wild as it did.”
The severe winds and multiple lightning strikes on Friday also caused a house fire and blew portions of a roof off a Woodstock strip mall.
During the morning storms, a lightning strike caused a fire at 849 Canterbury Drive in Crystal Lake. Emergency crews were dispatched at 9:14 a.m. after a resident said her bathroom was on fire and smoke was coming from the wall, according to a news release.
The fire was under control in about 15 minutes, but the house still was declared uninhabitable. Damage was estimated at $50,000.
About 7 p.m., Woodstock Fire Assistant Chief Terry Menzel said a strong burst of wind lifted part of a strip mall's roof, which then landed back on top of the building. The structure – located in the 1600 block of Eastwood Drive – has been deemed uninhabitable.
Some of the area's flooding also caused cars to become submerged.
About 10:45 a.m. in unincorporated Hebron, the driver of a 2005 Pontiac Grand Prix lost control while traveling north on Route 47, about a quarter-mile north of O’Brien Road. The car became submerged in standing water with the water level reaching the doors, said Sgt. Ken Neilsen of the McHenry County Sheriff’s Office.
The driver, Oralia Gil, 30, of Streamwood, said a large tractor or piece of farm equipment had been traveling south and took up a portion of her lane, forcing her off the road, Neilsen said.
Gil was charged with two counts of driving without child restraints. Neither she nor her four passengers, including children ages 7, 3, and 1, was injured.
Sgt. Greg Pyle of the McHenry County Sheriff’s Office said they got about 30 calls during the Friday night storm, but none of them were severe.
“Most of it was trees down and power lines and such,” he said. “It was about what we expected for unincorporated McHenry. Luckily, it wasn’t worse.”
While no tornadoes were reported Friday night, one funnel cloud was spotted 8 miles west of Huntley during the morning storms. Another was spotted on radar a mile south of Lake in the Hills, but there were no reports of a touchdown.
Some communities received more than 3 inches of rain Friday, according to the National Weather Service in Romeoville.
The weather is expected to be sunny through the next few days.
• Northwest Herald reporters Sarah Sutschek and Jillian Duchnowski contributed to this report.
