Illinois and Indiana tornado outbreak causes substantial damage and injuries

Severe thunderstorms swept the U.S. Midwest on Wednesday evening, spawning multiple tornadoes in Illinois, Wisconsin and Indiana. In Illinois, tornadoes struck locations such as Charleston and Teutopolis, toppling trees, downing power lines and damaging buildings. The National Weather Service issued several "particularly dangerous situation" warnings as wind gusts exceeded 80 mph.

In southern Indiana, at least five tornadoes touched down across Jackson, Monroe, Vigo, Clay, Scott, Franklin and Owen counties. An EF‑1 tornado traveled 6.6 mi with 110‑mph winds; an EF‑2 reached 130 mph and injured a woman in a mobile home. Substantial damage was reported in Monroe County, where trees felled homes, power lines were wrapped around debris and roads became impassable. Emergency crews performed welfare checks and began clearing debris, while power outages affected roughly 500 residents.

Overall, the storm system produced widespread tree loss, power outages, and structural damage across several Midwestern counties, prompting travel advisories and ongoing recovery efforts.