Severe Weather Possible Monday and Tuesday

Large hail, damaging winds and isolated tornadoes are all possible.

Get ready for some storms. The storm system that dropped large hail and tornadoes on parts of Iowa, Kansas and Oklahoma is now headed toward Illinois. The National Weather Service has placed most of Illinois in the "slight risk" category for severe weather on Monday and Tuesday. The main threats on both days will be damaging winds and large hail. The National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center noted in its technical discussions that isolated tornadoes are also possible on Monday and Tuesday. "The most violent storms will ignite during the afternoon and evening hours as daytime heating causes instability," Accuweather.com Meteorologist Meghan Evans wrote in her forecast. "Plenty of humid air will be in place to fuel the severe storms…

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Stormy Thursday in the Forecast

Damaging winds, large hail and isolated tornadoes are all possible.

After a Wednesday that saw storms drop 1-inch hail in North Barrington and more than 2 inches of rain in parts of McHenry County, I'm sure we'd all like a respite from the rain.    Unfortunately, we'll have to wait a little longer. Meteorologists are warning Illinois residents that there's a significant chance for severe weather Thursday, with storms possibly bringing damaging winds, large hail and isolated tornadoes. According to the National Weather Service's hazardous weather outlook for Thursday, severe weather will be possible during the day and into the evening. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Storm Prediction Center has placed half of Illinois in the "slight risk" category for severe weather, while parts of …

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Mr Tibbs

7:59 am on Thursday, April 18, 2013

Perhaps Guam would welcome you back... Well, not anyone of color,based upon your usual comments.   more ›

Korrina's Skycast

Are you Prepared for Severe Weather?

March 3-9 is National Severe Weather Preparedness Week.

Have you ever seen a tornado? I'll never forget the day I saw a tornado touch down. I was just 13 or 14 and on a youth group trip with my church. We were driving through Nebraska and getting ready to stop for dinner when the skies turned dark. We saw a funnel cloud pass overhead and heard the warning on the radio that people should leave their cars and seek shelter. We did exactly that. We stopped at McDonald's and got ready to seek shelter in the large refrigerator if the tornado hit. The tornado ultimately touched down about a mile from us. It was incredibly scary, and I hope I never experience that again. Are You Prepared? If a tornado warning was issued, would you know what to do?  This week is National Severe Weather Preparedness Week…

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Korrina Grom

11:42 am on Monday, March 4, 2013

Thanks for sharing, Martha! I'll definitely download that app.   more ›

Editor's Notebook

Ever Thought of Becoming a Trained Storm Spotter?

The National Weather Service Office in Chicago recently released its preliminary storm spotter schedule for 2013.

If a tornado watch were issued, would you know exactly what to look for in terms of cloud structure to spot a wall cloud or even a funnel? Pretty much everyone who knows me knows that I am a National Weather Service-trained severe weather spotter. Before I took my first training class on March 3, 2008, I was pretty sure I knew what a wall cloud looked like. I soon learned, though, that I was wrong. What I thought was a wall cloud—or an isolated lowering of the cloud base—was actually a shelf cloud. Now I know what to watch for. I can tell if an approaching storm could spawn a tornado, and I even put that training to use a couple of years ago. I watched from my old apartment in Waukegan as a strong storm formed over Lake Michigan. I spotted…

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Korrina Grom

10:18 am on Thursday, January 17, 2013

Hi atomgirl - Some of the classes do require pre-registration, but most don't. The schedule has all the details: http://www.crh.noaa.gov/news/display_cmsstory.php?wfo=lot&storyid=91641&source=0   more ›

Tornadoes, Large Hail Reported Across Midwest

A deadly tornado struck Woodward, Okla., killing six people.

While Chicagoland was spared from the weekend's severe weather, other parts of the Midwest weren't as lucky, with the National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center showing 150 reports of tornadoes Saturday and Sunday. The Storm Prediction Center had much of the Midwest — including Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska and Oklahoma — under a moderate or high risk of severe weather Saturday. Chicagoland was in the slight risk category Sunday. According to preliminary information, there were 428 reports of severe weather on Saturday: 135 tornado reports; 94 wind reports; and 199 reports of large hail. AccuWeather.com said the deadliest tornado struck Woodward, Okla., killing six people and injuring 30. The National Weather Service has given the …

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Flood and High Wind Warning Issued for Libertyville

Weather warning runs through 4 p.m. Thursday.

The National Weather Service has issued a lakeshore flood and high wind warning for Libertyville that runs through 4 p.m. Thursday. Waves were expected to build up to 14 feet to 18 feet Wednesday afternoon and up to 20 feet to 25 feet during the night. NWS says waves gradually will subside to less than 15 feet by late Thursday afternoon. The large waves are likely to result in flooding of areas near the lake and are expected to be worse than those experienced in the late September storm. Winds will continue to increase through the afternoon with winds of 40 to 45 mph and could increase to gusts up to 60 mph. The strongest winds are expected over locations adjacent to Lake Michigan. Strong winds could result in minor wind damage, downed …

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Patch Profile

Volunteers Still Helping to Rebuild after Katrina

A group of volunteers from United Methodist Church of Libertyville will make their sixth annual trip to Gulfport, Miss. to help families and businesses rebuild after Hurricane Katrina.

In 2005, Hurricane Katrina caused devastation along the central Gulf Coast states. Since the disaster, volunteers from United Methodist Church of Libertyville have gone to one hard-hit city, Gulfport, Miss. to help the residents and businesses rebuild. On Sept. 10, Welch along with eight other adult volunteers will go again their sixth time. Sixth Mission Trip to Gulf Coast Welch first traveled to the affected area as a volunteer when Red Cross made a request that 60,000 more volunteers were needed. What he remembers is the devastation, buildings knocked off their foundations, trees laid flat and roads covered in sand. “That little 20-mile strip of Gulfport that we saw, the coast was repeated over and over across thousands of miles. You …

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Magnitude 5.8 Earthquake Strikes East Coast

The earthquake hit the East Coast about 1:50 p.m. EST.

A magnitude 5.8 earthquake struck cities along the East Coast about 2 p.m. EDT Tuesday, Aug. 23. Fredericksburg Patch reported that the city felt a terrible tremble that sent people scurrying into streets. One worker was on top of a ladder when the earthquake struck. For the full story, visit: Fredericksburg.Patch.com.

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July 11 Storm Expected to Cost Village $96,000

Libertyville officials will not know how the storm impacted budget until next April.

The July 11 storm, which Commonwealth Edison called “one of the worst in 10 years,” is expected to cost the village of Libertyville about $96,000. The estimate includes costs between labor and equipment on storm cleanup. The majority of the cleanup occurred between July 11 to 22, village officials said. At the peak of the storm, more than 289,000 customers in the northern suburbs were without power. Trees and traffic lights also were down around Lake County. The worst tree damage in Libertyville was in the older areas of town, where the more established trees are: from Route 137 to Rockland Road, and from the Des Plaines River on the east to Butterfield Road on the west. The village does not budget for storms but tries to absorb the cost …

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Libertyville Couple Face Flooding Issue, Again

Village officials are troubled about how to relieve ponding effect on small Libertyville block.

Several July storms again have raised a longstanding water problem at the end of West Ellis Avenue, a low-lying road just south of Winchester Road off Milwaukee Avenue. For Alex and Pamela Jacobs, of 224 W. Ellis Ave., even a small rain can cause massive amounts of storm water to drain and pool in their yard and driveway. The couple says that several feet of water can take days to drain, leaving them stranded in their own home. “We tried to sell our home this spring because I’m worried about his health,” Pamela told the Streets Committee on July 26 concerning her husband Alex, 80, who suffers from a neurological condition. “Nobody can get to us when it ices over or the flood waters are too high. But nobody’s going to buy our home.” Issue …

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