More than 500K residents without power in the Midwest as Derecho slams the region
Authorities in all three states have reported significant storm damage, with wind gusts reaching up to 90 mph.
Severe storms target the Chicago metro area
SEVERE WEATHER HQ 🚨: FOX Weather Correspondent Robert Ray is on the scene in Chicago, Illinois, where residents are bracing for nasty weather, including heavy winds and thunderstorms.
Severe weather devastated parts of Illinois, Wisconsin and Missouri on Wednesday as thunderstorms brought destructive wind gusts and heavy rainfall to the region.
Authorities in all three states have reported significant storm damage, with wind gusts reaching up to 90 mph.
In Missouri, a damaging tornado struck parts of the state, causing additional destruction.
According to FOX Forecast Center, a derecho occurred—meaning a swath of damaging winds that is at least 250 miles long and 60 miles wide impacted the area.
The derecho stretched over 350 miles, starting in Iowa and blasted through Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan and Indiana.
Video footage captured by Exclusive Storm Tracker Brandon Copic shows intense wind gusts and pelting rain as the severe weather moved through the area.
According to PowerOutage.us, more than 270,000 customers in Illinois are without power, with Cook County among the hardest-hit areas. More than 189,000 customers in the county are experiencing outages.
Meanwhile, more than 45,000 customers in Wisconsin are without power, and Michigan has roughly 130,000 power outages as of 9 p.m. Over half a million remain without power at this hour.
Those numbers are expected to rise throughout the night as severe weather continues to impact the region.
In Joliet, IL, law enforcement officials shared on social media that numerous road hazards across the city were caused by downed trees and power lines. They noted that authorities are working to respond to incidents as quickly as possible.
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Image 1 of 4Multiple road hazards across the city in Joliet, IL, currently being caused by trees & wires down due to severe storms. (@JolietWeather/X)
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Image 2 of 4Trees down in Joilet, IL after severe thunderstorms. (@JolietWeather/X)
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Image 3 of 4Countless trees down across the west side of Joliet, IL after severe weather impacted the city. (@JolietWeather/X)
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Image 4 of 4Downed trees blocking roads in Joilet, IL. (@JolietWeather/X)
Similar conditions were reported in Seneca, IL. City officials said there were numerous downed power lines and trees and that crews were working frantically to clear debris to restore safe travel conditions.
14 SAVED FROM FLOODED ALABAMA CAVES DURING FLASH FLOOD EMERGENCY
Government officials across the three states are warning residents about potential road delays and advising them to be prepared to use alternate routes.
Stay with FOX Weather as this situation continues to unfold.