Storm damage causing power outages throughout area and Route 25 lane closures in East Dundee

Storm damage reported early Thursday morning is causing lane closures along portions of Route 25 between Route 72 and Brandt Road in East Dundee as ComEd crews continue to work to restore power throughout the area.

Captain Joe Schwab of the East Dundee Fire Protection District said downed power lines and trees had forced southbound traffic to be halted along that section of Route 25, but fire department officials said one of the two southbound lanes opened early Thursday afternoon.

Schwab said officials from the East Dundee Police Department and the Kane County Office of Emergency Management were on the scene to help with traffic flow because traffic signals were out, but they have since been restored.

As of 9:30 p.m. Thursday, ComEd's online map showed 82 customers in the Dundee area were still without power. The utility company's website indicated service had been restored to 99% of customers who had experienced outages from the storm

"We're working to get everyone up as quickly as we can," John Schoen, senior manager of communication with ComEd, said Thursday afternoon. "We know how uncomfortable it can be with the warm weather."

Meteorologist Jake Petr of the National Weather Service in Romeoville said his office was still assessing reports from the area. Preliminary reports indicated peak wind speeds of 64 mph in West Chicago as the storm tracked out of Wisconsin and through northern Illinois.

"The corridor where we had the most widespread kind of tree limb damage was tied to far northeast Illinois," Petr said. "We were expecting that general track with about 50- to 70-mile-per-hour winds."

Oscar Balbuena - assistant manager of the El Gran Paseo property on Route 25, formerly known as the Milk Pail - said Thursday morning a downed tree was blocking southbound Route 25 and that power was out at El Gran Paseo due to a downed power pole on the southern end of the property near the McGraw Wildlife Preserve.

Balbuena said El Gran Paseo hosts a flea market on weekends, and some of the outdoor tents were damaged and had to be discarded. Balbuena, however, said none of the structures suffered damage and the flea market is expected to continue this weekend.

"Everything should be normal," Balbuena said. "The vendors will either replace the tents that were lost or repair the ones that can be fixed."

Schwab said crews were dispatched to the scene around 3 a.m. Thursday as the storm came through the area. He said there were no reports of severe damage in the area other than scattered downed trees.

"It's standard storm damage except for that Route 25 corridor," Schwab said.