Chicago's southwest suburbs see massive damage after tornado rips through the area
INDIAN HEAD PARK, Ill. - Tornadoes that ripped through the Chicago area Wednesday night caused damage to many houses, buildings and vehicles.
Some of the worst damage from the severe weather could be seen in Indian Head Park.
The National Weather Service confirmed that an EF1 tornado struck the area Wednesday night. An EF1 has maximum winds of about 110 miles per hour.
The tornado started in Burr Ridge and tore through Indiana Head Park, Countryside, heading all the way to Stickney.
MORE: Videos, photos show severe weather across Chicagoland
The storm uprooted trees in Burr Ridge near 73rd and Wolf, snapping them and sending them into neighbors' yards and on top of some homes.
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A Diamond man, Scott Larson, told FOX 32 that he and his son were sitting in the parking lot of Eddie Merlot’s in Burr Ridge, about to celebrate his mom’s 77th birthday inside, when the storm struck and a light pole just missed their truck.
"The siren did not go off until it was on top of us," said Larson. "There was no time to react, had I opened my driver's door to try and remove my child and run into the restaurant, it would’ve ripped the door off."
He says the winds picked up and they ducked down in their truck. Then, the back of the truck started to lift off the ground.
"I’m a firm believer that I was at the start of that tornado," said Larson.
Those that live nearby say they did hear sirens, and their phones did go off, but it all happened so fast.
"I've never seen a funnel, it was dark gray and spinning slowly, and it picked up speed, and it was coming toward this way," said resident Alexandra Markgraf. "I live off County Line Road so on our end, it didn't, you couldn't hear anything, but what my father described, it was like something got hit, and it was like an electrical shock."
Those on the other side of Wolf Road said the power went off when the storm blew through and came back on overnight sometime after midnight.