Two tornadoes confirmed in Elgin, damaging several homes
ELGIN, Ill. (CBS) -- Several homes in northwest suburban Elgin were damaged after two tornadoes ripped through the community.
The National Weather Service confirmed Thursday that an EF-1 tornado with a maximum wind speed of 100 mph touched down in Elgin during Wednesday's storms, moving from east of Route 47 to the railroad tracks west of VIlla Olivaia Golf Course.
A second tornado, an EF-0 intensity twister with a maximum wind speed of 85 mph, touched down close to McDonald Road and ended along Hopps Road.
Chopper 2 and Kris Habermehl were over a neighborhood in Elgin where the tornado caused extensive damage to several homes Wednesday night.
The homes appeared to have sustained significant structural damage. Several emergency response agencies were in the area around Stoney Creek Drive.
Crews have been busy overnight, clearing the area. With widespread damage, Kane County and the city of Elgin are working with the Salvation Army and the Red Cross to help people forced out of their homes by storm damage.
At last word, there were no injuries in Kane County.
The storm also brought intense and heavy rain that significantly reduced visibility.
Once the rain cleared, the cleanup began, and neighbors began to assess the extent of the damage.
"The sirens went off, and I'd say literally 30 seconds later, it was super still, then, then came the loud rushing noise like a train," said Kathy D'Alessandro. "And it was gone literally 15 seconds later."
An Elgin resident, Charles Petersen, said, "I saw a huge windstorm coming through, looked out the window, and trees were blowing sideways. All I saw was a huge tornado come straight down here, and debris started flying all over the place."
Elgin residents were in for a long night after the significant damage.
