Joliet area tornado leaves trees on ground, debris scattered
PLAINFIELD, Ill. (CBS) -- An unusual outbreak of tornadoes caught many homeowners off guard Monday morning.
At least two tornadoes touched down in the suburbs Monday – including one that was caught on a homeowner's security camera in Plainfield.
As CBS 2's Jermont Terry reported, the damage was from the quick tornado even visible in the dark. The tornado was on the ground for under a minute, but it was to blame for sections of wood being ripped off a fence and left lying in a yard.
The winds whipped up quickly – catching the community off guard.
Surveillance video captured the very moment Monday morning that the tornado moved through in the community about a block away from the Will/Kendall County line. Residents there have Plainfield addresses but receive services from Joliet, which explains why the National Weather Service said the tornado technically touched down in Joliet.
There was no sound on the video, but debris was seen moving in a circular motion. The winds tossed outdoor furniture, roof shingles, and more.
"I was still in my truck, and I seen garbage cans flying," said homeowner Erik Langorgen. "I back my truck up a little bit - and all of a sudden, stuff just started crashing down."
By the time the winds stopped, large trees were down – and homeowners were perplexed by how quickly the storm moved in and out.
"It just kind of came out of nowhere," said Jason Lammbert. "There was all of a sudden like a barreling – like you're hearing helicopters overhead or there was a train coming through – and then the next thing you know, we had a tree crash onto our front window."
"I just saw it coming down the street, and I just watched it – it was just swirling, and there was debris everywhere," said Aaron Henderson. "It was pretty crazy"
While there was plenty of damage to the property, no one was injured when the rare winter tornadic storm popped up. The National Weather Service confirmed the tornado touched down, but is still assessing the size.
Plainfield, of course, was the site of a EF-5 tornado that left 29 people dead on Aug. 28, 1990.
