Severe storms disrupt Chicago as airports suspend flights
Powerful storms swept across the Midwest, causing widespread power outages, damaging property and disrupting air travel, with Chicago among the hardest-hit areas.
The severe weather prompted tornado warnings in parts of Illinois, Kansas, northern Missouri and southern Iowa, while severe thunderstorm watches remained in effect across sections of the Great Lakes region, News.Az reports, citing Independent.
Chicago experienced intense storms that brought down trees, damaged buildings and raised concerns over damaging winds, possible tornadoes and flash flooding as the weather system moved across northern Illinois.
Both Chicago O’Hare International Airport and Chicago Midway International Airport temporarily suspended flight operations due to the storms, while a similar ground stop was also imposed at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York.
According to flight tracking data, more than 1,000 flights arriving in and departing from Chicago were delayed or cancelled by Wednesday evening.
The storms caused significant damage across the region, including roof damage to an apartment building in the Chicago area that forced residents to evacuate. Barns collapsed in Wisconsin, buildings were damaged in northern Missouri, and numerous trees and power lines were brought down across several states.
More than 264,000 electricity customers in Illinois lost power, most of them in Cook County, while nearly 140,000 customers in Michigan were also affected. Additional outages were reported in Kansas, Wisconsin, Iowa, Indiana and Ohio.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson warned residents of the risk of tornadoes, severe thunderstorms, damaging winds and flash flooding, urging people to seek safe shelter, follow weather updates and check on their neighbours.
By Leyla Şirinova
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