Severe Storms Leave Trees Snapped, Roads Blocked In Far South Suburbs, Northwest Indiana

DYER, Ind. (CBS) -- Trees were snapped, roads were blocked, and a tornado was seen on the ground in some areas Saturday as severe storms pounded the area – bringing dangerous winds and drenching rain.

The far south suburbs and Northwest Indiana were hit particularly hard. As CBS 2's Steven Graves reported, neighbors in Dyer, Indiana heard tornado sirens multiple different times.

But they also said the worst winds and rain came before one siren was heard. The wind snapped trees in two throughout the neighborhood.

"Almost as quick as it started, it stopped – and the damage was done," said Michael Sardella.

The damage in Dyer greeted Michael and MaryBeth Sardella right in their front yard. A tree just snapped in half after high winds from multiple storms, while branches from other trees blocked streets.

"It happened so fast," Sardella said. "I mean, we didn't even have time to go the basement."

"It was just this mad rush for like 25, 30 seconds and you know, everything just went gray," said Anthony Synakiewicz.

People in nearby South Suburban Crete, Illinois snapped pictures of a funnel cloud around 2 p.m. Saturday.

Some in Dyer heard that familiar sound.

"People describe it as a freight train sound, and that's pretty much what it sounded like," Synakiewicz said.

"The sirens were probably going off three or four times this afternoon," said MaryBeth Sardella.

Thankfully, there were no reported injuries or widespread property damage in the Castleview Drive neighborhood of Dyer. The high wind burst was seemingly concentrated to one area near Prince and Camelot drives.

But gusts uprooted Synakiewicz's backyard trees - feet from his home.

"Three of them came down, so I'm just breaking them up and carrying them up front," he said.

But that is a small recovery effort, when many think about what could have happened.

Crews were out repairing power lines in Dyer Saturday night, even though electricity seemed to be OK in the area. The National Weather Service is assessing damage across the Chicago area to determine if any tornadoes officially formed.

A tornado hit Dyer in 2019. There were no injuries with that twister.

In:
• Crete
• Indiana