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A recent pattern of extreme weather conditions continued on Tuesday with Kankakee County in Illinois being hit by deadly tornadoes that then passed into neighboring Lake Village, Indiana. The tornadoes produced enormous hailstones, measuring 2-4 inches in diameter, with the largest hail measuring 6″ in diameter in Kankakee County.
The National Weather Service said the 6″ hailstone produced by the deadly tornadoes could be a record for hail size in the state of Illinois.
Deadly Tornadoes Hits Illinois And Indiana, Produces Record-Sized Hail
This week has produced a flurry of tornadoes across the heartland of our country. The University of Michigan Climate and Space Sciences Engineering school has a tool which tracks nationwide tornado activity and they have reported 35 tornadoes in the past 48 hours. That doesn’t even include the tornadoes that hit Michigan last weekend.
The YouTube channel ‘Weather is Dangerous’ compiled several clips of the tornadoes hitting Kankakee (pronounced ‘can-ka-key’) County. Around 40-seconds into the clip you can see the enormous hailstones landing in a lake causing huge splashes:
According to ABC 7 Chicago, at least 2 people, an elderly couple, were confirmed deceased from the suspected 4 tornadoes in the region with others suffering serious injuries. The National Weather Service is now conducting an investigation of the region to determine the scope of damage, how many tornadoes there were, and how powerful those tornadoes were.
The tornadoes sprung from a supercell originating near Pontiac, Illinois that moved toward Lake Village, Indiana. The NWS reported individuals being trapped underneath the wreckage of their homes and needing rescue.
The YouTube channel Live Storms Media shared aerial drone footage of the aftermath from the Kankakee tornadoes:
According to NOAA’s Storm Prediction Center which tracks tornado probabilities, there remains a chance of additional tornadoes touching down today to the East of where yesterday’s suspected four tornadoes touched down in Illinois and Indiana with hail up to 1.5″ and winds up to 70mph.