Thousands Still Without Power In McHenry County

MCHENRY COUNTY, IL — Strong storms slammed McHenry County this week and left thousands without power and air conditioning amid hot and humid weather. The storms downed trees in neighborhoods, led to road closures and traffic delays, and even forced one school district to push back its first day of school.

As of early Wednesday afternoon, there were still thousands of McHenry County residents without power.

In a letter to parents Wednesday, Prairie Grove School District Superintendent John Bute announced students' first day, which was supposed to be Thursday, will instead be Monday due to power outages. As of noon on Wednesday, lights were not back on at District 46 schools.

In Crystal Lake, where 23,000 residents remained without power late Thursday morning, officers and firefighters have stayed busy responding to various calls during the height of the storm. Between 6:30 p.m. on Aug. 10 and 12 p.m. on Aug. 11, dispatchers received 746 telephone calls. The police department handled 79 calls and the fire department was sent out to 59 calls, according to city officials.

In both Crystal Lake and Cary, power outages led to traffic back-ups along Route 14 due to malfunctioning traffic lights at Route 14 and Sands Road in Crystal Lake and another at Georgetown Drive and Three Oaks Road.

"Please use caution and expect delays," village officials wrote on the village of Cary Facebook page.

Public works crews in Lake in the Hills have been working hard to get downed trees out of roadways and to also clean up parks. Indian Trail Beach, Nockels Park and Barbara Key Park have been closed due to impacts from the storm, according to village officials.

"We are working quickly to clean up debris and repair damage sustained at each park. Each may take a few days to reopen based on the severe level of damage sustained," according to an update Wednesday evening from village staff.

Hilltop Drive from Birch Street to Willow Street in Lake in the Hills is also closed to allow public crews to work to clean up.

The Crystal Lake Sage YMCA was among the many area businesses forced to shut down. Lesley Franklin, executive director of the Sage, told members power still had not been restored as of Wednesday night.

"Unfortunately, the Sage YMCA is still without power and likely will be through the night. Please continue to check our social media channels for updates," she said in an email to members at about 7 p.m. Wednesday. As of early Thursday, a voicemail message for the YMCA continued to inform callers the building was closed.

Public works crews across the county continued Thursday to work to clean up following Monday night's storm — which included a confirmed EF-1 tornado in McHenry— and storms on Tuesday, which produced 60 mph winds, uprooted trees and, in one Crystal Lake neighborhood, tipped over the pole, which held the electric transformer.

In a neighborhood near Route 14 and Pingree Road in Crystal Lake, where the strong winds also downed power lines and uprooted trees, residents were still without power as of early Thursday, according to Kevin Duda, who lives in the 4900 block of State Street. He said neighbors worked to clean up debris late on Monday before getting slammed again on Tuesday.

Neighbors have been checking in with each other since Tuesday's power outage to make sure everyone was OK amid the heat—in particular, elderly residents living in the neighborhood, Duda said.

They rallied to collect supplies and generators to help "make sure everyone is safe and well," Duda told Patch.

Generators were hard to come by on Wednesday and were reportedly sold out at many stores. Cooling centers are open across McHenry County and can be viewed below with locations open around the clock at the Huntley Municipal Complex, Prairie Grove Village Hall, and McHenry Hospital in Harvard.

Some businesses, like Riverside Animal Clinic & Holistic Centers in McHenry, opened its doors to the public, offering to let anyone without power to stop by Wednesday to get out of the heat. Their pets were welcome, too, according to a post on the business's Facebook page.

"There is likely space for anyone without power to work in one of the corners or at a table. It’s not the Taj Mahal or anything, but we are available to anyone in the community today who needs help," according to a post on the Riverside Facebook page.

Meanwhile, area residents slammed by storms are cleaning up. Public works crews across the county are also working hard to clean up.

In Algonquin, the Algonquin/Fire Protection District kept busy Tuesday with first responders dispatched to about 30 storm-related calls around 5 p.m.

The calls included requests for help with downed wires, lightning strikes, trees on and in homes and vehicles, medical emergencies because of power outages and roads that had become unpassable, according to a news release from the fire department.

"The fire department is currently out in the community removing debris, assisting residents, and monitoring downed power lines until Com-Ed remedies the dangers," fire officials said Tuesday night.

Here is a look at other National Weather Service and weather spotter reports from Tuesday's storms in McHenry County:

• 6:38 p.m.: Multiple public reports of trees and power lines downed in the Crystal Lake, Algonquin, Cary and McHenry area.
• 7 p.m.: Large trees uprooted in McHenry.
• 7:03 p.m.: Reports of multiple trees down near Bull Valley.
• 7:05 p.m.: A delayed report relayed via social media of a large tree down through a roof in McHenry with a large tree also blown down in a neighboring yard.
• 7:05 p.m.: Numerous trees reported down near Wonder Lake. One tree had most of its branches removed.

The powerful storms Tuesday came on the heels of Monday night storms that also caused damage to area homes and trees. The National Weather Service on Tuesday afternoon confirmed that an EF-1 tornado touched down in McHenry.

No injuries have been reported following either the Monday or Tuesday storms.

Thursday is on track to be another hot and humid day with thunderstorms in the forecast as well.

This is a developing story. Check back to Patch for updates. Do you have storm photos you'd like to share? Text to the editor at 847-790-6417 or send via e-mail to amie.schaenzer@patch.com.