Crime & Safety

National Weather Service: 'Brief Tornado' Hit Plainfield, Romeoville

A tornado also hit Earlville, Illinois.

The National Weather Service on Tuesday confirmed that two EF-1 tornadoes touched down during Monday night's severe storms.

The first twister struck Earlville, located in LaSalle County about 35 miles southwest of Aurora, while the second hit northeast Plainfield and northwest Romeoville, according to the NWS.

"Both tornadoes were embedded within areas of widespread, damaging winds," the NWS reported, categorizing the twisters as "brief tornadoes" and saying full reports on both will be released soon.

An EF-1 tornado can have wind speeds of 86 to 110 mph, compared with the EF-5 tornado that hit the Plainfield area in 1990. An EF-5 twister has wind speeds in excess of 200 mph, and the devastating 1990 storm had winds averaging 300 mph. 

Monday night's winds knocked down trees, tore shingles and siding loose from homes, downed power lines and knocked out power. ComEd on Tuesday said restoring power would be a "multi-day effort."


Residents in both Plainfield and Romeoville reported continued power outages Tuesday.

Plainfield Deputy Fire Chief Jon Stratton said the Plainfield Police Department, fire department and public works were all without power as well, and working on generators.

Because of the power outages, the Plainfield Police Department could not serve as a cooling center Tuesday, but residents were urged to check out a list of Will County cooling centers if they needed a place to go.

Stratton said cleanup was well under way, and roads had reopened by Tuesday evening.

Despite the severe storm, "We've had very [few] calls with regard to the storm today," Stratton said Tuesday.

In Romeoville, crews could be seen removing downed trees on Tuesday, and the village reminded residents that the Romeoville Recreation Center and Fire Station 3 are open as cooling centers during the day for those without power. Residents without power after 9:30 p.m. were asked to call the Romeoville Police Department.

The Joliet Weather Center called the Plainfield/Romeoville and Earlville tornadoes "brief, small tornadoes," adding, "Not only were they rain wrapped and hard to see but it was night to add on to it."


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