storms plunge – Damaging storms sweeping through the Midwest knocked out power for nearly 390,000 residents across Illinois and Michigan and left at least 1,000 flights into and out of Chicago delayed or canceled, while meteorologists warned more severe weather could hit part
For a second day, the Midwest woke up to the same sound: the absence of electricity.
On Thursday. nearly 390. 000 customers across the region were without power as damaging storms moved through the central states and headed east. In Illinois alone, more than 226,000 outages were reported, including around 150,000 in Cook County. In Michigan, about 85,000 homes and businesses were still without electricity, according to poweroutage.us.
The outages came after Wednesday’s storms tore through multiple states. The National Weather Service said it received more than a dozen reports of tornadoes across northern Missouri, Iowa, Kansas and Illinois. There were no immediate reports of injuries or deaths.
Chicago felt the disruption quickly. Storms moved into the Chicago area on Wednesday afternoon, downing trees and damaging some buildings. That evening. the two major airports in the city—Chicago O’Hare International Airport and Chicago Midway International Airport—temporarily put all flights on hold due to thunderstorms. A similar ground stop was issued at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York.
By Wednesday evening, more than 1,000 flights going into and out of Chicago had been delayed or canceled, according to FlightAware. By Thursday morning, air traffic appeared to be back to normal, with only 24 flight cancellations and 34 delays nationwide, FlightAware reported.
The physical damage was visible across a wide swath of the Midwest. Strong winds blew part of the roof off an apartment building in the Chicago area, forcing residents to leave. Elsewhere. barns collapsed in Wisconsin. buildings were crushed in rural northern Missouri. and large trees and power lines were downed in other areas. with photos and video shared online.
Commonwealth Edison Company, which provides electric service across northern Illinois, said the storms had downed poles and wires. “We know this is challenging and will restore service as safely and quickly as conditions allow,” the company said in a post on X.
The storm system is now shifting, but forecasters warned the worst isn’t over. The National Weather Service said the frontal system driving the storms—bringing high winds and hail—was moving eastward on Thursday. Meteorologist Frank Pereira said the risk continues in stages.
“There’s also a slight risk of severe thunderstorms in parts of the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic,” Pereira said. He also warned that another wave of severe weather could develop. “Going forward. we’re expecting another area of severe weather to develop across portions of the central Plains. Midwest. particularly from Iowa. northern Missouri. northeastward through the Great Lakes. ” Pereira said. “Again, it’s all tied into a pretty well-defined frontal system.”.
The storms are being fueled by cool air from Canada colliding with warm, humid air from the South.
Between power crews and flight operations, the disruption carried into the night. The storms soaked Rate Field in Chicago before Wednesday night’s game between the White Sox and the Atlanta Braves.
The story was later updated to correct the name of the White Sox stadium to Rate Field, from Guaranteed Rate Field.
midwest storms power outages Chicago O'Hare Chicago Midway flight delays tornado reports Commonwealth Edison Rate Field severe thunderstorms