The tornado that tore through northern Illinois Thursday night has received a preliminary rating of EF4 based on an initial ground survey of the most heavily damaged area, the National Weather Service reported Friday evening. “Based on early findings, the tornado that tracked from near Rochelle to near Belvidere and impacted the community of Fairdale appears to have been a single long track tornado,” notes an NWS statement. “An aerial survey will be conducted tomorrow, weather permitting, to confirm a final rating.”
The EF or Enhanced Fujita Tornado Intentisy Scale measures a tornado’s impact. The scale goes from 0 to 5, with 5 being a storm that causes incredible damage. An EF4 tornado brings with it windspeeds of 166 to 200 mph and causes “devastating” damage. Estimated peak windspeeds of Thursday’s tornado reached 180 to 200 mph. (For more on the EF Scale, here is a detailed article.)
Earlier in the day Friday, local officials said they were confident everyone was out of the area. Kirkland Fire Department Chief Chad Connell said they brought in three K-9 teams as a “precautionary measure,” to “double check our work.” Connell said he expected the search-and-rescue portion of the operation to finish before 5 p.m. Central time.
“We think we have everyone accounted for,” added DeKalb County Sheriff Roger Scott. “We have no specific person that’s unaccounted for.”
The area struck yesterday still has no power. Local officials said residents could come to assess the damage to their property on an “escorted basis,” but encouraged people not to stay around until conditions were proven safe.
Gov. Bruce Rauner earlier in the day Friday declared Ogle and DeKalb counties disaster areas, making state resources available for the areas hardest hit by this storm, which took two lives. Geraldine M. Schultz, 67, and Jacqueline Klosa, 69, next-door neighbors, were both killed, and 11 more people were hospitalized after at least one tornado ripped through northern Illinois Thursday evening at about 7:15 p.m., officials said. Klosa’s body was found during a second search Friday morning, according to the Chicago Tribune.
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