A violent tornado outbreak swept through parts of Iowa, Illinois, and Indiana on Wednesday evening, leveling homes and forcing emergency declarations across multiple communities. The National Weather Service confirmed at least four tornadoes, including two rated EF-3 — with winds up to 165 mph — near Streator, Illinois and Kouts, Indiana. At least one person was killed in Iowa, while several others suffered minor injuries in Effingham County, Illinois.
The twisters left a trail of destruction across a wide swath of the Midwest. In Effingham County, 30 homes were reported as total losses and 29 more were heavily damaged. Blue Mound Elementary School sustained significant damage, forcing summer school cancellations, and Eastern Illinois University in Charleston closed for the day after widespread tree damage and downed power lines. At its peak, the outbreak cut power to more than 82,000 customers across the affected states.
Interstate 69 in Indiana was temporarily closed in both directions due to debris, and wreckage from a single tornado in Clark County was tracked 21 miles from the touchdown point. The Charleston mayor declared a local state of emergency as recovery efforts got underway across the region.