HUGE Storm in the Chicago Area

[unico_love]

So there was a huge, huge storm and tornado warning yesterday. Previously we've been having a lot of storms and our power has been going out virtually every day for a couple hours. But yesterday around 3pm we lost all electricity and running water and it's still off and will be indefinitely. I heard (this is hearsay) that the tornado hit some four-story buildings in Lombard. Regardless, Lombard is apparently a total disaster, shut-down, huge oak trees in yards and furniture outside because everything flooded. Power is partly on in areas of downtown Wheaton and Glen Ellyn, so we went to the store for a couple things recently, but they were out of D batteries. I tried to read by flashlight last night but our flashlights are almost out of batteries, so I went to bed early, though the lightning was still flashing periodically.

I will need to get rid of everything in my freezer/refrigerator. Everything is bad and rancid. There are trees down everywhere. I helped pick up branches today. I'm currently at a house with a Super Big Generator. It's powering this house a lot of the time with water and electricity, and the neighbors' houses partly.

No running water means no flushable toilets, no showers, etc. So it's nice to be able to be here. I am being allowed to spend the night!:D I even got my cd player working so I can listen to music and read. So things are okay for me, not so much for some other people. My father apparently got a generator at some point, and my mother is lending it out to someone in Lombard (this same person's chainsaw broke from trying to cut through pieces of the humongous tree of theirs that fell. Where I'm at isn't the worst, but I can say looking out the window there is a tree fallen over onto a broken electrical line... And Com Ed is nowhere insight. I bet we'll be one of the later places to regain power, though I don't want to go into my location, since I intend for this post to be public. Nothing is open in Lombard or near me, we drove a bit out to Wheaton for food and pet stuff, a failed attempt to find D batteries (everyone bought them up).

Generators are all sold out everywhere. One guy drove up to Rockford (45 minute drive??) to buy a generator to bring back to his business office. However, his electricity was back on when he arrived. So he sold the generator for $1,000!

There's supposed to be another storm, but I hope it's not this bad. (My mother said that would be unlikely). In Madison, WI it was broadcast that at least Chicago and the west suburbs were getting 80 mph winds yesterday.

Comments

[asharak.livejournal.com]

I heard about it on the news. Glad you're okay.

[unico-love.livejournal.com]

Thanks!

[azalynn.livejournal.com]

Wow, I hadn't heard about that storm (I don't have regular TV so sometimes I don't hear about even really big things that happen). No running water would be awful! Glad you are safe.

[unico-love.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

[jackiesjottings.livejournal.com]

My friend beckypoc lives in Chicago too and she mentioned the sky looked funny in a post. Glad you are OK and I hope everyone else there will be too.

[unico-love.livejournal.com]

Thank you! I don't know much of what is going on, but there was a tornado near me so one area of the Chicago area was badly hit by this storm, I guess. I'm worried for the people hit worse than we were by this:(

[moggymania.livejournal.com]

Yikes -- when I got your comment yesterday that your power was down indefinitely I was wondering what caused it... I'm glad you're okay and have a comfortable place to stay!

[unico-love.livejournal.com]

Thank you:) I just got my electricity back, surprisingly. The water isn't working quite right yet, I don't think, but enough for me to be in my house!

been there, done that, wish i hadn't

[(Anonymous)]

Yours truly was sitting for five hours in my car on I-80 with a bladder full of urine -- that needed to be emptied. Unfortunately I had to take an extended tour of Indiana to get into Michigan. Indiana is disgusting. If I get a ticket in Indiana I'm just going to use it as my excuse to never go back there again.

-ATH

Re: been there, done that, wish i hadn't

[unico-love.livejournal.com]

I've never been to Indiana. My mother goes sometimes to visit relatives, but I've never had a reason to go...

[anonoymah.livejournal.com]

I am really glad that you're OK. That same storm system passed through the city where Kaiden lives after it left Chicago, and he was at work at the time. They actually evacuated everyone first into a stairwell, and then into the restrooms, as the tornado did touch down near where he works, but no power outage or anything for him. I've lived without power for over a week before (and where I live, if the power's out, so is the water) so I know how much that sucks, but at least for me it was in the winter where there was no danger of dying from lack of air conditioning (we had a woodstove so we both cooked and heated with that...the stuff in the fridge was OK since we were in a blizzard). I hope you get power and water back soon! I have thought a million times about getting a generator due to our frequent blackouts here. I'm thinking that and a few solar panels on my roof and I might be able to say good-bye to my electric bill. When things like this happen, it just reminds me of how rational and practical this is, even if it is a big up-front expense.

[unico-love.livejournal.com]

We just got our power back late this afternoon, thankfully! And the water is back, though apparently is might be a little "shaky." We have a well since we are unincorporated (I imagine you are the same...?) I hadn't realized that you can pour water into the toilet and still use it, though. I don't know anything about these kinds of things, and I imagined that the water would just flood out, like with a clogged toilet. And since we still do live in a fairly heavily populated suburban area, I can't imagine being allowed to just relieve yourself outside without being arrested for indecent exposure.

I only found out today that for most streets they don't lose their water when they lose their power, so at least that is a major benefit for streets still out of power, as long as they get city water.