Wednesday, March 16, 2016

Hail, high winds cause damage in Illinois




Posted 7:04 AM, March 16, 2016, by Associated Press,
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Winds ripped the roof off a home in Springfield and a possible tornado was reported in Kankakee County as a severe storm moved through Illinois.

The National Weather Service says the most common severe weather reported Tuesday night was hail. The largest was seen in western to central Illinois, and northern Illinois saw scattered reports of hail as large as a half-dollar. Weather watchers in northern Illinois reported small hail covering the ground, including in Rochelle.

Across western and parts of central Illinois there were multiple tornado reports.

Peoria County spokeswoman Jenny Fulton tells the (Peoria) Journal Star a possible tornado damaged homes there. No injuries were reported. Peoria Fire Department Battalion Chief Kent Seiler says a ceiling collapsed at a nursing home, but no one was injured or trapped.