A multi-state tornado outbreak has spawned at least one large "wedge" tornado that tore across northern Illinois, demolishing buildings in a small town and killing at least one. At the peak of the outbreak on Thursday night, tornado warnings extended from Ohio to Texas along a powerful cold front that was moving eastward.
Authorities say 67-year-old Geraldine M. Schultz was killed and eight people injured after the tornado swept through tiny Fairdale, Illinois, an unincorporated town of about 150, some 80 miles northwest of Chicago.
Damage was widespread in Fairdale. Roofs were ripped off homes and numerous structures were reported to be heavily damaged or completely leveled. Workers used chainsaws to clear roads blocked by snapped trees.
The very large tornado that struck Fairdale was broadcast live on national television by the Weather Channel, with the help of storm chasers on the ground.
The National Weather Service says at least two tornadoes churned through six north-central Illinois counties — Boone, DeKalb, Lee, McHenry, Ogle and Winnebago. Three teams were being deployed to assess the damage, the path of the tornadoes and their strength.
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The tornado struck Fairdale around 7 p.m., sweeping homes off their foundations and leaving streets impassable with debris and downed power lines. Officials say at least 17 structures were destroyed and about 50 damaged.
Other parts of DeKalb County also saw heavy damage. In neighboring Rochelle, rescue officials pulled more than a dozen people out of destroyed buildings. Fourteen people were rescued after being trapped in the Grubsteakers restaurant in Rochelle, according to The Daily Chronicle. Others were pulled out of their pummeled homes, WREX Channel 13's Lindsey Clark reported on Twitter.
Lynn-Scott-Rock Asst. Fire Chief says minor injuries to the 12 people pulled from restaurant destroyed from tornado. pic.twitter.com/ax1wruWejm— Lindsey Clark (@LindseyClarkk) April 10, 2015
Robin Biggs, an employee at the Super 8 motel in nearby Rochelle, told The Associated Press she took video of the storm, which she said "took everything out in its path."
"I have lived her 18 years and I have never seen a tornado that big or stay on the ground that long," she said. "What we have is a small one touching the ground and going right back up, but this just stayed down and went all the way across the horizon."
7:35pm CDT: Massive tornado continues near Garden Prairie, IL. #ilwx pic.twitter.com/9oMEZHqtFY— Brad Panovich (@wxbrad) April 10, 2015
The National Weather Service had issued tornado warnings for several counties in the state earlier in the evening, including Marshall, Peoria, Woodford, and Sangamon.
Damage in #Fairdale, IL (via Jessica Smart/@23WIFR) #ILwx #tornado — TornadoesDave (@TornadoesDave) Apr 09 2015
The cold front producing the severe weather also generated massive hail, high winds and a few tornadoes on Wednesday. The front extends from the Midwest to the Gulf Coast, and will present a severe storm threat overnight and again on Friday, this time along the eastern seaboard.
Damage in Fairdale, IL (from tornado about an hour ago via Angel Karma / @23WIFR ) pic.twitter.com/Kr1LXjMkom— 28storms.com (@28storms) April 10, 2015
Right now, a path being cleared in #Fairdale. Significant damage/debris spread out @WISN12News pic.twitter.com/bs210caAPp— Ben Hutchison (@BennyHutch) April 10, 2015
@23WIFR #tornado #rochelle pic.twitter.com/1VxO4UWgbu— Klayton Koch (@kkoch03) April 10, 2015
Scariest moment of my life! This happened 15mins ago. Please pray for all those effected by this tornado. I'm still shaking. #tornado #illinois #weatherchannel A video posted by Geno Finn (@g_finn89) on Apr 9, 2015 at 5:26pm PDT
(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "//connect.facebook.net/en_US/sdk.js#xfbml=1&version=v2.3"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);}(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk'));Rochelle, ILPosted by Stephanie Sego Curtis on Thursday, April 9, 2015
Unfortunatly, this tornado impacted the small town of Fairdale, IL. It was a large wedge tornado that may have caused EF-2 to EF-4 damage. Photo credit goes to Cole Hicks from Rochelle, IL. #prayforillinois #rochelle #fairdale #tornado #damage A photo posted by Benjamin Beanz Giventer (@twister14) on Apr 9, 2015 at 7:38pm PDT
Additional reporting by Mashable's Andrew Freedman as well as The Associated Press.
UPDATED 7:30 p.m. PT to include details of people trapped in buildings in Rochelle, Illinois.
UPDATED 8:00 p.m. PT to include information about reported death in Fairdale, Illinois.
UPDATED 9:45 a.m. ET to include latest information from overnight search and rescue efforts.