Cleanup continues after 15 tornadoes confirmed during Monday's derecho
More than 1,300 ComEd customers in Lombard were still without electricity Thursday as cooling centers opened in the aftermath of a tornado that left a 2-mile-long trail of damage.
Lombard and Wheaton were two of the hardest-hit suburbs during Monday's derecho, a powerful storm system that produced more than a dozen tornadoes and damaging winds across the region. The National Weather Service on Thursday reported a new tally of 15 confirmed tornadoes in portions of northern Illinois and northwest Indiana.
You'd have to go back six years to remember a derecho of similar magnitude in the Chicago area, said Kevin Birk, a meteorologist at the weather service's Romeoville office.
"That was the last time we had an event that was this prolific with the very strong winds and a number of tornadoes," Birk said.
In Wheaton, a short-lived, EF1 tornado packing winds of up to 90 mph touched down near the intersection of Seminary Avenue and Scott Street before moving northeast.
A section of the roof peeled off College Church across from Wheaton College, knocking down a 50-foot steeple. Another large piece of roofing landed in the middle of Washington Street, Executive Pastor John Seward said.
Inspectors on Thursday were taking stock of the damage to the church, but a separate bell tower appeared unscathed from the storm.
Starting next week, crews will begin work to repair the roof. A crane removed the damaged steeple earlier this week.
"We don't anticipate an interruption to our services," Seward said.
He thanked the 30 volunteers who showed up early Tuesday to help clean up the area around the church, a 150-year-old congregation that lost two willow trees.
"We still have some large branches that are way up in trees," said Seward, adding that the church is working with a tree service company to address the issue.
Also beginning next week, the city's public works department will use a portion of municipal parking lot No. 9 near Carlton Avenue and Liberty Drive to temporarily store tree debris until the materials can be chipped and removed. The rest of the lot will remain open for commuter parking.
The same storm that generated the Wheaton tornado struck Lombard with a path of tornado damage east of I-355, just east of Lilacia Park, the weather service reported. That EF1 tornado also continued in a northeasterly direction, uprooting trees and damaging some homes.
The weather service recorded the worst damage near and around the Lombard Common, a park district site at Grace Street and St. Charles Road. The tornado lifted just northeast of Jefferson Middle School.
Some streets directly within the tornado's path remain closed as the village waits for ComEd crews to clear downed lines, officials said in a storm update Thursday. The utility has restored power to more than 3,162 customers.
ComEd has indicated that all customers who lost power will have electricity restored by 3 p.m. Saturday.
The village is stockpiling debris at the parking lot at Lombard Common.
The DuPage Convention & Visitors Bureau has worked with area hotels to offer households without power storm rates, ranging from $55 to $149 per night. Those include Comfort Suites, Embassy Suites, Hyatt Place and Sonesta ES Suites.
Parkview Community Church, near Glen Ellyn's border with Lombard, also has opened its lobby and gym for a place to cool off, charge devices and connect to Wi-Fi this week from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Temperatures Friday are expected to climb near 90 degrees.