Strong storms result in 'chaos' for NW suburb

DES PLAINES (WBBM NEWSRADIO) - Tuesday night’s storms ended the extreme heat but brought their own problems.

In Des Plaines, they’re dealing with the aftermath. On a cul-de-sac on Michael Road, Brian Schmidt said neighborhood kids were initially enjoying the rain last night.

“It came down really hard, and the kids ran inside the neighbors' houses,” Schmidt said. “Wind just kicked up, not much lightning, but basically the wind kicked up real hard, rain pelting from all directions and then next thing you know, chaos.”

That chaos took the form of a massive tree splitting and crashing on to his Jeep that’s parked on the street.

He said the power went out around 6:30 p.m., briefly, came back on and went off again. It forced Schmidt and his family to try to find a cool place to sleep inside his home without air conditioning.

As bad as things are, he recognizes they could have been worse.

“Fortunately, my wife’s vehicle was right in the middle of the driveway…There was a sale at Kohls, so she left, and, if she did not leave, then, ya, her car would have been completely destroyed, probably totaled,” Schmidt said.

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