tornados? (Chicago, Springfield, Pekin: power lines, tornadoes, live in)

[Juice13610]

^^
Exactly.

[Chinolala]

I've lived here for 40 years and have never even seen one...if I did, I was to little to remember. I've live on the NW side of the city my entire life. I don't worry about tornados at all. My cousin did lose her house in the Plainfield tornado, but after insurance money, they rebuilt and her "new" house is much nicer.

[Chicago60614]

Well yeah, tornadoes are much more of an "event" and something exciting for an afternoon than something someone would EVER get WORRIED about in their normal daily life.

I've never known anyone who's actually seen a tornado, and the chances of dying from one over the past 10 years in Illinois are 1 in around 6,800,000 people.

If it weren't for one tornado a few years ago in central illinois the rate would be around 1 in 13,000,000.

[Switch625]

Tornadoes are something Illinoisans love to scare people from other areas about. The tales of damage can be terrifying. But truth is, it's just one of those little things that make life different. We don't have wildfires, earthquakes are vanishingly rare, hurricanes can't get this far inland, etc. We don't have to worry about those, just the odd tornado. Yes you have to take them seriously when they are in your neighborhood, but truly... I'm 43. I was born here and lived in east central illinois my whole life. I've seen FIVE tornadoes in all those years. Don't sweat the tornadoes.

[Steve-o]

I agree with Switch625. While every year you may get a few warnings and hear the sirens go off, the storms are short-lived and rarely spawn tornadoes, especially destructive ones. Ive lived here 30 years and have not even seen a rotation. Microbursts are FAR more common than tornadoes, and can do some pretty hefty damage. This year Carol Stream was hit with a bad microburst, several people were hurt.

[Inthesprawlpath]

The safest place to be from tornados is Soldier Field in Chicago.I hear there are rarely touchdowns there.

[qwemmie]

That is why I live in Mackinaw Il....No tornadoes!!....I grew up here and after the big one hit in S. Pekin , Pekin and Morton (we were just missed) we decided to move (back) to Mackinaw a bit sooner than planned....I can now sleep through the nights again during storms...(rub wood)

[Steve-o]

Originally Posted by qwemmie

I can now sleep through the nights again during storms...(rub wood)

You mean, "knock on wood"? That sounds bad.

[qwemmie]

NO....lol...Rub wood......it's tree friendly .....Knocking hurts!

[BUalumni]

Originally Posted by qwemmie

That is why I live in Mackinaw Il....No tornadoes!!....I grew up here and after the big one hit in S. Pekin , Pekin and Morton (we were just missed) we decided to move (back) to Mackinaw a bit sooner than planned....I can now sleep through the nights again during storms...(rub wood)

I too remember the storm that hit those towns! If memory serves me right, there were some big apartments in Morton that were damaged, yet, no one was hurt? I think it actaully started around Manito, did some damage there, and then headed northeast. I do however remember that there was some significant damage in the Heritage Lake area, not very long ago (7-10 years) also. I can't remember if it was a tornado, or just a really strong straight lined wind. In any case the Peoria-Bloomington area has had many close calls, but nothing so severe that we ever attracted national attention. That is really interesting considering how flat many of our cities and towns area. Wasn't it just a few weeks ago that Goodfield was hit with a nasty storm. Thanks goodess no one was hurt!