Plainfield - The Unwarned F5 Tornado
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- Опубліковано 16 жов 2024
- August 28th 1990.
The sky grows dark over the small town of Plainfield Illinois, while thousands of residents carry on with their daily activities, completely unaware that just to their northwest one of the worst tornadoes in US history is racing directly towards them.
On August 28, 1990. A catastrophic F5 tornado would strike the town of Plainfield claiming the lives of 29 and hit without a Tornado Warning. In this video we will discuss the fascinating meteorology that caused this tornado, the people it impacted and the failures at the National Weather Service that allowed it to strike without warning. This is the true story of the 1990 Plainfield Tornado: The Unwarned F5.
F Scale explanations:
F0 Light Damage (40-72mph)
F1 Moderate Damage (73-112mph)
F2 Significant Damage (113-157mph)
F3 Severe Damage (158-206mph)
F4 Devastating Damage (207-260mph)
F5 Incredible Damage (261-318mph)
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Thank you so much for watching. These videos take forever to make so it means the world to see everyone enjoying it. Be sure to let me know what I should cover next and if you had any personal experiences with this tornado. Also subscribe so you don’t miss the next one
I was 10 years old in 1985 and a huge F-5 hit my city of Niles Ohio, the sound, the damage and the aftermath is something I will never forget
Beautiful video! I can’t believe you only have 16K subscribers 🤯
Chiraq
1965 Palm Sunday Outbreak
@@highriskchris ;)
As a child in the 90s, the 'green sky' was something we were taught to look out for after this event. thanks for posting
Former farm kid from Pennsylvania here, and my grandpa taught me the same thing!
Was at a county fair a couple summers back, and the air just felt & smelled Wrong.
I kept looking at the sky, just watching the clouds turn that distinct turquoise before a bad storm. Wasn’t going to worry too much [we always have t-storms in the summer] until the color started to shift to a jade green, and I told them we needed to get inside ASAP.
They laughed me off because there wasn't anything about a tornado in the weather apps.
Not even two minutes later the wind picked up, an announcement was made, the hail started falling, and everyone was running for shelter.
We did all make it out okay, and I'm glad grandpa was looking out for me.
(Also taught them never to doubt my sky-watching habits lol)
Yes the green sky is a sign.
Green sky is large hail aloft reflecting off of the sunlight
We moved from Utah to Nebraska 2.5 years ago and our friend is a spotter for the fire department so he taught us what to look for! I’ve lived through bad earthquakes but when the wind stops and it all goes silent I know we have about 2 mins to find shelter if we are out and about. I still wouldn’t move back to the Rockies I’m a flat lander for life now 🙌🏻 I agree with ace’s comment because the smell is just different not like an incoming thunder storm like we are all used to out here. Very hard to explain the smell if you’ve never experienced it I guess. Stay safe out there tornado season is just around the corner again
@@Ace-1525 Isn't it sad how folks refuse to listen until something actually happens. Just because a kid or a woman issues the warning, they blow it off, whereas if a grown man were to issue the SAME warning, it would be taken more seriously! What's with this automatic mental discrimination?
I grew up in the Chicago suburbs as a 2000s kid. It is weird that even as a tornado fanatic, today is the first time I have ever heard of this incredibly deadly tornado that ravaged the suburbs?
Update: I had asked my parents and, inevitably, they remember the day clear as glass and have their own stories. I'm old enough to call it the Sears tower instead of the Willis tower, but not old enough for there to have been any mention of this tornado growing up.
This one is infamous in Chicago. The only one that rivals it is the 1967 Oak Lawn F4.
@@CeltonHenderson The Lemont 1976 F4 is also quite infamous as it was one of the first strong tornadoes with good video footage. Fortunately the damage was limited as the path went over large areas of forest preserves and Argonne National Laboratory.
I live in Michigan city, about 40 miles east of Chicagoland area. Had no idea there was an F5 in our area. Normally the lake creates a bubble and you’ll notice strong storms die out within 20 miles of the lake. It seems to be the southeast moving storms that hold together and give us an ass whipping
Absolutely. Man, if you ever go through Plainfield any local will tell you about it.
One of the strongest and worst tornadoes in History.
This one wasn’t deadly, but more recent, the Ef3 that tracked over Naperville and Woodridge
I was in this tornado. My aunt and cousins had to be dug out of their basement bc the house collapsed over them. Thankfully they were all okay. It literally felt like a freight train. It shook the ground like nothing I’ve ever felt.
I'm so sorry you had to go through that. Glad your family is ok
:c
Warrior
Never happened.
That's my biggest fear😕
I grew up in Joliet, and this was the most terrifying tornado of my entire life! It stopped right before our street. I will never forget the sound! It sounds like a massive freight train coming straight for you. Our neighbors lawn furniture was hovering in the air 2 to 3 feet off the ground when we ran to the basement. We had debris in our yard that came from miles away, and two by fours impaled into our house. Our friends in Plainfield only survived thanks to their basement stairs as the rest of the house was blown away. I’ve been terrified of tornadoes ever since.
That must have been petrifying! I’m glad you were okay!
If I was a meteorologist and saw a CAPE value of 8000, I'd just go ahead and issue a tornado warning immediately.
Same
Exactly. When I saw that I went "oh shit". The CAPE on the day the infamous Jarrell tornado granulated a whole subdivision wasn't even that high
@@jakeg3733 Yeah and the sheer wasn't that impressive either. The Jarrell tornado scares me for that exact reason. If you look at the set-up for that day, nothing stood out and said "disastrous tornado". Yet it was one of the biggest, strongest tornadoes ever recorded in human history.
@@skrounstthat's utterly horrifying. I thought I remember in Carly Anna WX video on Jarrell she said that something caused a shift so that better shear was in place which helped kick it into existence.
@@alwaysreadin163 Yeah, gravity waves I think! Which are kinda like ripples in a pond (except in the atomosphere). That added enough of a disturbance to get an updraft spinning, Then once it started spinning there was absolutely nothing to stop it. Tricky part is, you can't forecast gravity waves
I remember this like it was yesterday...the scariest sky I've ever seen.
I was working alone for a construction company just east of Plainfield in Romeoville.
I was just wrapping up the job and the hail, wind, and rain was blowing my van around like a toy.
I had to pull over and take my chances of what may happen.
Within 5 minutes it was completely over and my way home was the same path as the monster.
I lived outside of Crest Hill at the time, and used to live in the apartments that were hit, about a year earlier.
I've never been so scared in my life, and haven't been since.
I'm now 61 and was 28 at the time.
I took the day off as it was very hot that day or I would have been very close as well
I was just up the road in a similar situation when Utica, Illinois was completely destroyed only 10 minutes from my house. I was under the overpass where the loves truck stop is now.
I stay in Scotland and its really only wet and cold. This looks scary but mesmerising also if you get what I mean. Sorry for the folk who lost obviously 😢
My dad was working in the same area that day too for a company called Strongberg construction. I remember him describing heading east on I-80 out of that area around 3:30 PM that afternoon. He said it was pretty intense. later that night we saw on the news what had happened. That summer was particularly bad for thunderstorms in our area. Not too many storm seasons I can recall over the last 35 years where the winds would make large trees sway significantly. I may be inaccurate about that observation but that summer did scare the hell out of me me weather wise and I haven't seen anything like it since.
Thank God you made it through.
I was 2 years old when this happened so I have no memories of it. We lived in Rockdale at the time (Which was a little village inside Joliet) and my mom and grandparents would talk about this a lot. I remember my mom saying that the Plainfield Tornado was the tornado that made my mom want to be a storm chaser, but my dad and grandparents said "Absolutely not." She didn't chase them physically, but she studied them, learned about them and became the family weather informer. I remember she'd call me when I lived on my own yelling "GET IN THE BASEMENT!!" and THEN the sirens would go off. I miss my mom. I hope if she did get reincarnated, she'd be a great meteorologist in her next life.
This is my MOM! She is a true weather girl! She tells me when to go take shelter also!!
👩👧😇🤟
i’m so sorry for your loss
❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
Sorry for your loss. Wasn't my mom but my grandpa on mom's side. Tornado sirens would be going off and we'd bolt next door to gram and gramps place for the basement and mom,gram and sis would be yelling for gramps, dad and me to get our azzes down in the basement and all the while gramps would be watching and pointing out things to watch for. Most of the time because this was the 70s and conditions on the other end of the county would trigger the sirens countywide ( this was when the sirens did double duty of calling the volunteer firemen to the station as well as tornado warning) but when gramps said go you went. Remember getting dad and gramps in a bit of trouble with mom and gram as I got up to about 14 or 15 as one time gramps and dad were out on the front walk and remember gramps pointing off to the northwest and both him and and dad kind of looking like they were about to bolt but then stopped and kept looking. I joined them on the front walk and saw my first funnel cloud heading due east about a block away. Everything was in the clear shortly after that. Of course absolutely excited about seeing my first tornado mentioned how cool it was to mom and sis.....yeah dad had some explaining 😂
Excellent video!
Actress Melissa McCarthy is from Plainfield and survived this tornado. She was in town, home from college, was visiting a friend, they noticed the ominous sky all of a sudden and ran to the basement, emerged a minute later and the second story of the house was gone. She tells the story during her hot sauce interview on the “Hot Ones” UA-cam show.
Yep! I was close by in Frankfort
😮
Dang. If only it had taken her instead of those teachers. Horrible actress.
@@legitbeans9078what the hell is wrong with you?
@legitbeans9078 she was good in gilmore girls. That all she should have done.
WGN's Tom Skilling just retired this year. He was the chief meteorologist for Chicago's news station in 1990. I went to a conference where he was a speaker, and when this storm was brought up, he broke down. He still feels personally responsible for every life lost that day, and we all couldn't imagine how much this day weighed on him. A freak tornado, still the only F5 tornado recorded in the month of August.
I'm going to his retirement party today. Its rumored he went against the advice of the NWS and warned people of the tornado threat. I wanted to ask him about it. Guess I wont be doing that anymore lol
That’s far better than trying to brush it off on someone else or play it off.
Tom skilling was an amazing meteorologist
It wasn’t his fault it also wasn’t the nws fault. They are unpredictable and back then Doppler wasnt very good. Can’t blame someone for something they can’t see or predict. They have no control over Mother Nature.
@@Dad.and.AddisonCAPE of 8000? Yeah sure, thunderstorms may have trouble getting organized depending but if they do it's going to be a very, very bad time
August 27th 1990 was my 13th birthday. The entire day was a hellish, relentless combination of hot+humid, which by all indications, gave no signs of letting up anytime soon. On August 28th, it was more of the same weather. My parents had taken the week off and we spent the day in our backyard pool, much as we had all week.
I'll never, EVER forget.....my Dad pointing out the dark clouds as they approached and saying, "thank God, it's finally going to cool down."
We prepared for the storm by covering the pool, putting away patio furniture and carrying out other tasks that wouldn't matter in a few minutes. Then, all hell broke loose.
It’s VERY surprising that the possibility of tornadoes didn’t occur to your dad. Living in a tornado-prone area, the day was horribly hot and humid, and then you suddenly see a hideous giant storm approaching - nothing about that should have been at all welcoming.
My 8th birthday. Hey fellow 27th born.
Now I want to hear the rest of the story! May I request the details of what happened after that?! :)
This was the day I was born
Ikr! Perfect example of how to get people sucked into a story with just the right amount of details promising excitement and just a touch drama...keeps you on the edge of your seat, leaning forward with a feeling of rushed anticipation of what's to come..truly has all the hallmarks of a great story teller.@@EphemeralProductions
excellent presentation of a notorious illinois F5!
Appreciate it dude, super interesting meteorology with this one, I didn't even get a chance to talk about the lightning polarity flip prior to tornadogenesis.
hello i love your videos mr styro
@@CeltonHenderson Excellent quality, especially for a channel of this size!
Good to see you here, huge fan! Revisiting these events after I seen an image and some videos I took after the December 2021 tornado outbreak. I’m in Western Kentucky, and the late night tristate tornado was probably the most horrifying experience in my 20 years living here. Drove through Mayfield and Bremen after to see the damage. Absolutely horrific.
@@CeltonHenderson I think something similar happened to the El Reno supercell in 2013, a barrage of predominantly positive polarity CG's around the updraft base, right before the tornado forms. It's really fascinating!
I remember this day. I left work at 3:30 in Skokie and it was so unbearably hot and humid it felt like walking into a furnace. It was hard to breathe. I actually commented to my coworker that it felt like tornado weather. The next day I happened to be on the outskirts of the Plainfield area and observed the stripped trees and devastation. It was sobering. 💔
Yes! I remember how hot it was. My mom was working in Naperville that day and left work around that time and remarked to a coworker how bad it looked in that direction. She drove into Plainfield just after the tornado went through on her way home to Coal City. She had to stop in the street to get her bearings and find the turn onto Rt. 30 because nothing looked familiar. People were coming out of their houses in shock. Somehow the road was clear enough for her to make it to I-55. I remember she worried all night about a former coworker who lived in Plainfield, but got news the next day at work, that she was okay.
Coal city has had IT'S fair share of tornadoes these past few years!😢😥 (We live in Morris)
My grandparent’s house was destroyed by the Plainfield tornado. My family attended St Mary Immaculate. Your video gave me goosebumps.
I was nine years old, and school had just started back up. The school bus dropped me off around 3 and sky was a sinister shade of green. My mother quickly ushered me and my sister inside before the sky opened and poured torrents of rain along with golf ball-sized hail. Me, being a stupid kid, ran outside so I could put some of the hail in the freezer. It was one hell of a storm and I think we may have lost power. We lived in Joliet at the time and were well out of the tornado’s path.
My dad worked at a manufacturing plant on Rt 59. You can see it on the map at timestamp 5:36. Upper right corner. He had just gotten to work when the power went out. He and a bunch of his coworkers watched this behemoth of a tornado plow right past the open dock door while hail and debris pounded against the metal building. They were out of the tornado’s path, but barely. He said the twister was massive.
My grandparents lived on the same block as St Mary’s. Timestamp 6:53. Their house was just outside the upper part of red ring, so the tornado grazed them. Their roof was ripped off, trees uprooted. Their neighbors two doors down lost their entire house. My grandfather said he heard a sound like an oncoming train and barely had time to run down into the basement before the twister hit.
My grandmother wasn’t as lucky. She was having her hair done at a strip mall that also housed the grocery store mentioned at 7:01. She and her stylist ran into the bathroom and knelt, clutching each other, and praying, as the building collapsed around them. They climbed out of the rubble with the help of first responders. For the rest of her life, she had panic attacks whenever there was a thunderstorm.
After the storm passed, my dad came home and told us the news. I’m a little fuzzy on what happened next, but I think dad made some calls, then left again to go help our grandparents.
I was very fortunate that my dad and my grandparents all survived the event. Scared everyone shitless. Some people lost friends. I will say the outpouring of support afterwards was very heartwarming. We got free food from the Red Cross when we were out there helping our grandparents bag up trash.
That said, your video is one of the best accounts of this I’ve seen. You’ve more than earned my subscription.
Your story is incredible. That must have left an intense affect on your family and the community. Thank you for sharing!
I was 8, we'd just left fox valley mall for school supplies n clothes, lived in Yorkville so outta the path barely but we got hit, my dad worked at allsteel he got home said his s10 truck was bouncing 6 inches off the ground n had hail damage until he sold it 15 yrs later I'll never forget this I remember that church w the white bubble like covering been in 3 tornados since but none come close
I remember starting school the next week and a girl that was in the tornado from Plainfield transferred to my school she was cut up w a black eye, think her last name was bahr this dominated the news for the next month I believe your grandmothers story was on the news or in the beacon newspaper it sounds awfully familiar
@@kaitispang9595 A family member I had lived in Plano at the time, she said that that storm was supposed to hit the Kendall County area, but it shifted towards Joliet. It could’ve been us who got hit.
Wow, so glad everyone survived! I love researching and chasing tornadoes but it breaks my heart to see them cause such catastrophic destruction. Thank you for sharing.
I am completely tripped out right now. This video popped up on my feed..
I was in that tornado when I was 11 in the Rockford / Marengo, Illinois area.
It was so crazy watching this I haven’t seen that footage for so long. Since I saw it with my own two eyes 😎
I watched a medium size tornado tear right through my backyard and flip my dad’s Dodge ram toss it into nothing… tore the tractor right out of our barn.
Awesome job on the video !
You can’t understand what it meant to me to see this again .
Sure dude 😎
Joliet resident here:
I wasn’t born yet when this tornado hit, but seeing the path of the twister pass no more than 300 feet away from my current home gave me such an eerie feeling. When growing up with tornados, you know there’s always a risk. You just never imagine something like this happening.
Blud wasn’t even alive and still yapping
@@CaseohClippedggnahhh you did him wrong-😂😂😂😂
@@CaseohClippedgg Bro thinks hes cool 💀
But that could be
True
Imagine just chilling in Plainfield and getting no warning about a devastating tornado, truly terrifying in prospective. Thanks to you Celton for uncovering this historic tornado.
Imagine making this comment while probably being one of the first to whine about severe weather being less severe than it turns out to be. THIS tornado is part of the reason why forecasters today stay on the side of caution. Y'all only care about "no warning" when people are killed. Otherwise most of you are annoyed because the "weather people didn't get it right and spread panic".
I remember seeing something a few years back, it was during the afternoon, around the DeKalb area somewhere, a small tornado, think it was little, EF0 or below, forming along the back of a neighborhood being filmed. Problem with these areas, it's kind of a tornado alley in/around the suburbs, it's a long the I-88 corridor, a dividing line between civilization and farmland, and the unpredictability of the effect of corn crops on our weather systems when it comes to spawning tornadoes.
If you grow up in Illinois, especially the areas outside of Chicago, you learn to look at the sky and see the signs of severe weather. I was home on leave in Channahon and I knew someone was getting a tornado to the north when the green sky and hail started. I can remember listening to WCSJ as they were almost hit and the DJ saying he had never seen anything like what he saw out his window.
@@RebeccaReich-f5iWhere on God’s Green Earth is your base to that atrocious accusation?
Very scary.
I am a storm spotter in Texas. Made a trip to Chicago in November of 1990 with my girl friend to see her grandmother. As we were driving through Joliet, I noticed tornado damage and pointed it out to her. We drove toward the Joliet Mall and saw the houses obliterated. Warnings are great it is 90% of the battle but you need a good shelter. Contrary to popular belief people do die in basements.
Tornados may be the best example of "If it's your time, it's your time." You hear stories about people caught in the open and living, then others take shelter and die. I saw this one just a few months ago where this weak tornado goes across a highway, knocks over a pickup truck with the driver in it. The pickup is on its side, gets spun 360 degrees, the tornado puts the truck back on all four tires and the teenager drives away. Not his time. Then there is the famous video of the people who hid under the bridge and lived. Others tried it and died.
That last statement is a hard-pill to swallow, but it's sadly true. If I'm not mistaken, both the Parkersburg and the Hackleburg-Phil Campbell EF5s produced such damage. Also, if a tornado is able to dislodge a foundation (see Jarrell and Smithville), it's not out of the question that it could collapse. Scary shit
@@crazedvole and that guy with the pickup truck got offered a brand new one by Chevrolet. His old one, as I heard, will be sent to a museum
I survived near misses in 1967 and 2015 tornadoes in N. Ill. I sadly now live in an old mobile home on someone's farm in sw Wis. No basement here, and no where to get down in a ditch. On a hill. All i can do is pray here.
Indeed. Sometimes you can do everything right, but the tornado is just so damn powerful that if you’re caught in its path you’re dead regardless.
My mom, who lived well south of Plainfield and ordinarily worked in Joliet, was working north of Plainfield that day. As she and a coworker went to their cars, they remarked on how bad the weather looked in that direction. She drove into Plainfield right after the tornado went through. She had to stop in the road to get her bearings because nothing looked familiar. I was complete devastation and surreal. Surprisingly, she was able to cut across on Rt. 30 to I-55 and make it home. As she did, emergency vehicles were moving in to block the roads into town.
My hometown has a fall festival at the end of September every year with a parade, and I recall that the Plainfield marching band kids wore black pants and white shirts because their uniforms had been lost. People all along the route rose to their feet as they went by.
😭😭😭
Lived in the apartment complex in Crest Hill years before around 1982-83. When I saw them flash pictures on the news afterward, my mind went right to a guy that lived above me on the second level. I had a basement apartment for that exact reason. I would have been at work in Romeoville that day but always wondered who survived since I worked with people from Plainfield and Joliet. Gives you perspective on life. Providence can go both ways.
This is one of the best documentaries on UA-cam! The explanation and graphics are superb! Incredible job!!
I was 5 when this happened. I still live in Joliet and still have nightmares about this monster. Our house was not directly hit but the wind was so strong it uprooted a big elm tree in our backyard and crashed it through our back window. I'll never forget it, no sirens but we knew to get in the basement.
I live within miles of the path of this tornado, and even to this day in school it’s still talked about. I’ve driven through the path of it and last year my science teacher told us that this tornado is the reason tornado education is done at our school.
Lining up in the hallway and tucking yourself into a little ball against the walls & covering the back of your neck.
I am also from the area lol.
@@missyelliot6237 yup tornado stuff is taken super seriously because of it
Grew up in this area as well. Drills and tornado prep were always hammered home, year after year.
Tornado education existed well before then, it just wasn't as prioritized until after. I started Kindergarten in 1992, and we had at least 2 tornado drills a year and a full section of class to talk about it, all the way through my school career. Now, yet again, it's on the backburner. At least where my kids attend school.
Tornado warnings have come a long way since my childhood. In the end, the strength of the tornado decides who will live and who will not. I say this from experience.
I was outside to see up close a top end EF3 approach my hometown. The tornado took many well built homes completely off their foundations and destroyed the high school. My son, a senior at the school was there. When it was over he struggled with his own injuries to help severely injured students lying next to him.
Eight of them lost their lives March 1st, 2007.
Yeah I’ve read about this tornado before, so glad to hear your son survived. Alabama has had more than its fair share of devastating tornadoes over the years. It unfortunately just happens to sit right where the atmospheric conditions are perfect for their development, especially in the spring.
Damn. I’m happy your son was okay!!
@@missyelliot6237 Thank you.
I'm glad your son survived, and God bless him that inspite of his own injuries he helped others . Prayers for the families of the eight victims who lost their lives that day 🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼Also on this date my little sister was born
This is a complete lie.
Grew up in the area and live about ten minutes from Plainfield now. I've heard stories about this, but didn't know much about what actually happened, being only 2 when it took place. Became a skywarn spotter last year, and as terrified as I am when it comes to tornadic storms, the best weapon to combat that fear is knowledge.
Crazy hearing about this. I've lived in Plainfield my whole life (born in 2001) and never heard of this tornado. Closest thing I can recall is teachers in the early 2000's telling us to be good and pay attention during tornado drills because some kids in the Plainfield high school "watched the school crumble around them" and "survived by listening to their teachers" pretty chilling now that I think about it.
I'm shocked you lived in Plainfield and never heard about the tornado that demolished your high school.
@@Xontar02 I lived in Naperville for all of middle school and freshman year of high school and never heard about it also born 2001 this is the first I’m hearing of any natural disaster happening in Illinois
@@LuhblakkmusixI lived in Naperville my whole life I think you just weren't paying attention
So hard to believe so many young people's parents never talked to them about life before they were born. It's weird. We knew everything about my parents and grandparents' generations.
I'm fascinated with tornados, the shear power, the randomness, the horrific scenarios they can create, I can see why some victims feel as though the tornado was looking for them.
It's quite amazing, isn't it? To see mother nature fully flex her muscles and remind us all just how vulnerable and weak we all are. It's a force that can't be fought or taken down...you just have to stay put and survive it. It's absolutely remarkable!
I remember that day well. I was working at that time for the City of Aurora in the Building Department. I vividly recall the pea green sky and the smell of freshly plowed earth. Not long after staff came to tell me that Plainfield had been hit. Seeing the other worldly devastation with my own eyes in the days that followed will always live in my memory. Thanks for your video, which brought new insights to me 33 years on.
I also work for the Building Department for a small town in TN. Were you an inspector?
You, my friend, are a professional with reporting. 10/10 coverage of this horrific tornado.
Cheers from Canada & happy new year!
I'd like to wish you and yours a Happy New Year, my friend. I am looking forward to your future posts as your skills in producing quality content are that of a true professional!
By this time next year (2025), I'm betting that the number of users who are subscribed to your channel, triples, if not higher!
DIDN'T CANADA HAVE
A 🌪️ FEW YEARS AGO ?
THAT JUST SAT THERE
BIG AS ALL HxLL ALSO
Weed Me
@@WilliamL.PilgerJr.-bq1pb you having a stroke or?
Hi@@sethferri
IT'S THE OR !!
Weed Me
I was there. Ill never forget this storm. Houses were impaled with 2×4 lumber. I remember exactly where i was when this storm hit. Ive lived here all my life. I was a teenager at the time. Im now 50.
3 story apartment buildings were leveled. This storm took out a path that involved 3 cities.
Plainfield, cresthill & joliet.
It was indeed an earie aqua green sky then pitch black !
We just had the tornado 🌪 sirens go off last night in Plainfield
Must be reassuring that they actually sounded given this particular episode in Plainfield’s history
This is nice work, man. Visually compelling in its animation, compositing, editing, etc. Great info. Sounds good too. Kudos!
I live in Lockport IL, around 20 minutes from Plainfield, and I heard stories of my dad when he was with his parents hiding in their basement after the road nearby was broken into smithereens in Plainfield. He was waiting for something bad to happen for 2 and 1/2 hours. Obviously my dad is fine, but he said that trauma still scares him today, so I still feel bad.
Another reason why there was no tornado warning was that the tornado track was on the border between two weather stations responsible for warning the area, and communications between the two offices were poor, having to rely on a third station to get adequate radar coverage since the storm was in the ground clutter of pre-Doppler radar. The forecasters also hesitated with a warning because of past criticism that they had issued warnings too often when nothing happened. It has led to what is called the "Plainfield Syndrome", where forecasters will issue a warning even if they believe a severe weather event is unlikely, rather than hold back and risk another disaster like this.
As for the high school, had the tornado struck just a day later, hundreds of students would've been attending class, which could've increased the injuries and fatalities. In fact, school starting the next day was part of the reason why spotter networks weren't deployed, they were not as full as they would've been in June or July due to students going back to school.
I am from this area and I can attest they are crazy with the tornado warnings now. They activate the sirens for just about every thunderstorm. I think that it's overkill and can cause apathy with the residents as they are so used to false flags. I think there needs to be a better balance.
@@bobbiellison4315 Well, they always say that you should not depend on the sirens, because they may not be sounded in time or could fail if power is lost. I do agree that issuing too many warnings can cause problems, even if forecasters prefer to err on the side of caution.
Good job buddy. I lived every minute of this from 12pm on. I was working a job in WOODSTOCK IL. right dead center os the path of the parent thunder storm north or Aurora. My crew and i say the storm coming so we picked up our tools ad beat it. there was an erie sense of dread and a sense of emergency to get out of there, we drove the front of the storm down to stone park, just before i got in my car to run home, i looked up and to this day i have never seen a cloud top to huge, high, and just boiling, it just went straight up and up and up. THERE WAS NOTHING ON THE RADIO OR TV, I MEAN NOTHING, BUT I WAS LOOKING AT A MONSTER. i drove home, straight south and joined up with rt 30 north of plainfield, it right on my ass.. i have bad ears and the pressure was so low i was getting dizzy and my ears wanted to pop. i was concerned for my brother and mother so i stopped there. thats when it caught me, the house was a ranch with no basement and i really thought we were gonna die. you never saw the tornado, it was hidden by rain, hail, debris, and flying mud and dirt, once it passed i went home, i lived in the CREST HILL LAKES APARTMENTS, yes, the apartment complex in the video. i swear when i got to the complex, debris was still falling, it looked like a home depot was thrown into a wood chipper,, then i saw, right where i would have parked had i have got straight home and not to my mothers house, a series of cars smashed to the pavement by the water tower. i would have been under that tower. all of the debris was pushed up into large piles and they burned it all for weeks, they burned everything, wood, plastic, insulation, the piles glowed at night. THERE WAS NEVER A SIREN, WARNING ON THE TELEVISION, NOTHING. for years after that they would sound the sirens when a squirrel would fart in the woods. this was a great video. it showed the path of my entire day. by the way, this happened so fast that a group of 11 young boys who were playing in the parking lot after school had no where to hide so they ran into a cornfield and were elctricuted when power lines came down on them. if you know where to look you can still see scars from this storm all these years later.
I wasn't born until 2001 and my family didn't move to the area until only a few years before I was born so I only ever really heard little tidbits about this growing up. I don't think anyone ever mentioned there were no sirens. Now I understand why growing up we would get sirens 3-4 times a year though. The closest thing we've really had in my lifetime was the Washington IL tornado, and I remember that storm but the actual tornado was thankfully far from me.
@@eliwilson3902i was also born in 2001, and grew up in the tiny village just south of Joliet. tornado siren test day is the first Tuesday or Wednesday of the month, every month for us (forgive me, i'm tired and haven't lived in the state for almost 3 years). we lived within a 3 minute drive of the siren but i remember as an older teenager telling my mom that it was very hard to hear at our house. that was when i found out that sometimes, the placement of the sirens fail to overlap and leave spots where there are homes nearly or entirely out of range for the sound. we were pretty much right at the edge of the ring of range when i checked the map
those poor boys 😢
Thanks for covering this!
I used to live in plainfield and had teachers who experienced this, one who was a student at Plainfield Central High School when this happened. It's a terrible thing, but inspiring to hear the way communities came together to help
I only just recently moved from Aurora to Plainfield a few weeks before this video went up and supposedly my home was built about 30 years ago and now looking at this tornado's path of destruction it looks like the area my home was built is in the path that took a direct hit from this tornado. Of course the home was built after it but its interesting to know the history of where I live, and I already love this town, very peaceful but convinient
It wasn't a replacement home?
This man really paid attention is science class. Props to this guy.
I loved science when I was in school I remember Bill Nye the science Guy lol
I used to be a firefighter back then in a small suburb of Aurora called Moecherville. I was there about an hour after the tornado hit and tore up Plainfield I remember it like it was yesterday and it is forever etched into my brain! They had called different fire depts. around the area to come in and search and rescue. I saw train cars laying on their sides in a cornfield, I saw them large dumpsters up in trees wrapped around the trees! What were once homes reduced to like toothpicks laying all over roads! The sheer power of tornadoes is unbelievable until you witness it in person! We didn't have cell phones back then otherwise I would have taken all sorts of pics to corroborate my story!
I made a mention on a different comments, were police/fire departments in the area notifying other departments around that a tornado was out? Because I remember we got a siren from the fire station in Rolling Meadows and my dad who worked for Elk Grove public works called my mom that he got a radio call to get back into the garage immediately that a tornado was down out that way
I lived in the area most of my life, Romeoville, Plainfield, Joliet and other towns. How have I never heard of Moecherville? Is it an actual town, or like a subdivision/community.?
@@bobbiellison4315 It is just a small subdivision of Aurora on the East side of Aurora.
My friend and I were walking to her house after school, in Sandwich, Illinois, and this storm went right over us. A lady yelled out to us that a tornado was coming and to hurry home. Super scary!
As a plainfield resident I can confirm this is the second worst thing to happen to our town, the worst being when our Walmart closed down
That was devastating to us romeoville folks as well because now our walmart is crazy packed.
@@jesussamurai8433 hey you guys stole our checkout lanes at least! My friend said you guys got way more when ours closed 😂
We should just close all of them and bring back local businesses
@@dmitrykarkov4747 agreed from a leftist perspective. But disagree on a common sense perspective
@@chimppower2748 we need to go through less things. I am willing to accept a higher cost for goods, AND less goods, because I think it will lead to BETTER goods and more sustainable goods. It’s like getting off drugs. Short term feels bad, but long term is so much better. I’m ready to give up on the livestock diet that big food(now big food/pharma) foists onto us. I’m ready for everything to not be super convenient. We need to use more of what we have and throw away less. The wealth inequality and the globalist bullshit, and the mega-corporations… fucking ENOUGH. Dude look at our pop culture. It’s not liberated, it’s immoral and tacky and gaudy. We could do a lot better as a country, and as a people. We could have employee owned businesses where people are actually motivated to do a good job. We could have an entire cultural revolution, which I think would be the best case scenario. People are fed up with this fake ass system. Left vs right IDGAF it’s irrelevant to me. Our country is becoming an embarrassment.
Thanks for making this video. I still think about this day from time to time and my heart goes out to all who lost loved ones!
Fantastic job! One of my favorite things about your videos is the way you show the path of the tornado moving over the map, as if we are following it in real time. It's a fabulous touch. 👌
I'm glad that the Plainfield tornado is starting to get some real attention. It's also both funny and a little sad that it's getting more recognition from those of us who were either small children back in 1990 or weren't even born yet, but better late than never. Some people may not find Plainfield as interesting because there really isn't much of any video footage or photos of the weather as it happened. IMO, the lack of imagery makes it even frightening. This monster literally came without any warning. The victims had no idea what was in store for them that hot, muggy afternoon(late August here in the Rust Belt can be absolutely sweltering! 🥵).
This tragedy was obviously a huge ding on the reputation of the National Weather Service. The investigation afterward felt as if the NWS field office in Chicago was treated with kid gloves. Perphaps this tragedy was more the a result of the limited technology and understanding of severe weather at the time than human error. This wasn't like Joplin 2011, where the public had adequate warnings, but many chose to disregard it. It's all up for debate, which makes it all the more surprising that more people don't mention this storm as much as other famous F5 tornadoes from this era. Nonetheless, it does feel as if some serious overhaul was done in order to make sure that Illinois doesn't see a repeat of Plainfield.
Thank you, I try to have the tornadoes move on the map to help give perspective and help the viewers put themselves in that situation. Plainfield's lack of documentation is super interesting to me, I can't even imagine just seeing a wall of green clouds and rain without a tornado warning followed by just death and destruction. Its terrifying.
This phenomenon is known as the Plainfield Syndrome. In its basic concept; the National Weather Service is in a "damned if we do and damned if we don't" type of situation with regards to the Plainfield Syndrome as they are afraid of issuing either too many warnings or not enough warnings.
My mom and dad still talk about it every august. We were close but a town over from Plainfield. I was a baby.
They went to help and said it’s something you’d never expect to see, just utter devastation . My mom still says she’s never felt such heavy and muggy air in her life!
I remember that initially there was denial that it was a tornado. Reports were that it was straight line winds, which even the general public knew couldn’t be true.
I remember this happening as a kid I was 9 and lived about 45 miles away and I think this is what set off my fear of tornadoes and storms.
The movie twister started mine. We dont even get tornados where i live
@@snickerdoodles787SAME! And I was way too young when I saw Twister for the first time (probably 5 y/o.. 6 y/o max).
While I’m at it, I have arachnophobia because of the movie Arachnophobia, which I probably saw that same year. That one pisses me off more because I encounter way more spiders than tornado warnings.
@NatalieMarie917 lmao omg that's crazy! I got arachnophobia from 8 legged freaks lol
@@snickerdoodles787 Funnily enough, twister started my obsession with tornadoes!
My mom was a construction worker (flagger) and it was one of the first days at her job. Her coworkers jumped into their trucks before realizing and returning to get her after 30 minutes. She was short and petite-she had to lay down in a ditch and hold the tall grass to not get sucked away.
Holy hell. She totally should’ve sued. I hope she’s doing ok now ❤
@@marissahicks3529Sue what? The Tornado? Scheeez
@@Sconi71You can’t be that dumb 😅
@@marissahicks3529somehow they didn’t realize she was there, in their panic. They can’t really be faulted for that
Dude how is your channel this small??? You’re so underrated man LOVE YOUR VIDEOS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I grew up in Aurora and we still remember this tornado. It’s crazy watching days after we had 11 tornados 🌪️ touch down in freaking February!!!
I remember this day; it was the first day of school and while my hometown was roughly 10-15 miles to the north of Plainfield, I remember those storm clouds forming around the time school got out, and how terrifying it looked. That was one of the tragedies I remember about this story, was that it hit around the time kids were getting out of school
Me too. I was just starting my senior year at St. Francis in Wheaton the day this went down. Ironically, I live in Plainfield now.
I was there in Joliet. Plainfield's first day was supposed to be the next day.
I was a baby when this happened, but I take these storms seriously now..After Naperville as well in 2001.
I grew up in Downers Grove (~20 miles NE of Plainfield) and watched the storm on the Weather Channel radar that day as it happened. The sky grew dark but the weather didnt get too nasty for us. A week after the tornado, my father and I went up in a Cessna and saw the scoured ground from the air.
I grew up and still live in Plainfield, I was 6 years old when this hit. I was in my house and after there was nothing left. I was buried under a bunch debris but luckily had no injuries. I remember this day quite well.
I was 6 & living in Plainfield too, over on Amhurst Ct, we were lucky & had minimal damage but my dad was a lineman and was sent out that day after the smaller ones hit but before the big one. My mom & I, after coming up from the basement and seeing the damage, thought we would never see him again. Thankfully he was able to hide in a storm drain & was unharmed. I still remember that day vividly.
My bosses sister survived it in bathtub. Maiden name was Blevins
My grandma was a teacher at the high school. Mrs. Pauley. She broke her ankle the day before the tornado and stayed home. Thank goodness! I still have the home video my grandpa filmed from their walkout basement during the storm the next day.
You should post it!
Really helpful meterological info here that's not included in most tornado documentary videos. Thanks!
Hey hi hello!
I grew up in Plainfield and was in this tornado. Thanks for covering this! I was very young when it rolled through, so I don't remember much, but my parents had told me a lot about what happened that day. One of the more interesting things my dad always talked about is that it was a weird day the rain had died down beforehand and it sounded like a train horn, he had gone out to look at the weather during the heights of the storm (Midwesterner will understand lol) he had said that the tornado moved almost horizontally he said it moved like a huge barrel across the grounds. According to him he's never seen anything like it since.
Great video man, keep up the great work
Yep we're all professional porch storm spotters 😂
I remember this day like it was yesterday. We were living in Rockford/Machesney Park at the time. I came home from work that day around 11. I stepped outside to get to my car and was shocked by the humidity/moisture that was in the air. I was born in this area but raised some 400 miles south near the Ohio River where August humidity was downright brutal but this end of the state rarely experienced that kind of oppressive moisture but on that day it was miserable! At around 1:30 my wife woke me telling me they had just issued a tornado warning for the county just to or east. We were under a severe thunderstorm warning. I stepped outside to look at the sky before the thunderstorm arrived and was immediately concerned by that ominous greenish tint in the clouds. I knew it was going to get bad and honestly was preparing to hear the tornado sirens any moment. The hall came the wind got crazy (neighbor lost his tree) and the power went out. We sat in the basement till everything passed. I went back outside and will never forget how the sky looked off to our southeast. The sky looked like the clouds were swirling a drain kind of like watching the water drain out of a bath tub. I knew then someone, somewhere was going to get hit by a tornado of they weren't already. Also after those storms cleared the temp must have dropped 20°. Sure enough it wasn't but an hour and we started getting the reports about the tornado going through Plainfield.
I was 12 years old delivering newspapers on my bike in Minooka for the Joliet Herald when this happened. I have never in my life seen the sky such an ominous green color. So crazy finding out later that day Plainfield had been hit so hard.
My father was a firefighter at the time for the Plainfield fire department. So many stories. He had mentioned that he didn’t get a chance to sleep for days and days. The photos he has are incredible. I gotta find those photos.
Please post them somewhere!
Thanks for a great video about this.
I was at football practice in Aurora this day, and we were only about 9 miles from where the F5 touched down. It was a HOT August day, just miserable heat and humidity. We saw this storm head towards Plainfield in its final stages before it became the F5. It was seriously the most terrifying storm I've ever seen, and we had a great view from the highest point of our school (at that time). We were doing plays on the chalkboard when the earliest part of the storm chased us off the practice field.
We ran down to the locker rooms FAST when they realized just what was coming towards us and passing us. SO glad our coaches were so vigilant that day. The feeling of genuine terror as we did the duck and cover was thick in that locker room. I felt so awful for Plainfield high schoolers that day and all who suffered from this. Just terrible. To this day I'm still very respectful of the power of storms and tornadoes. When I hear of a possibility of storms, I pay attention.
This informational account was well delivered with accurate and appropriate video supplements to support the topic. It lacked unnecessary hype or embellishment and gave a clear an informed picture that is very viewer relatable. I'd score: 98/100. Really well done, thanks for the effort!
I was 12 when the tornado happened and lived in Plainfield close to downtown. Our church and school (St. Mary’s) were destroyed along with the high school that I would attend the next fall. Our house was minimally damaged but I remember we had to pick through our grass and remove all the bits of debris - insulation, nails, bits of concrete, glass. We had a big piece of someone’s roof in our yard (never found out where it came from). A boy whose family we knew, our school principal, and music teacher died. Walking south on Rt 59 from our home was surreal. Trees whittled away, cars thrown into farm fields, buildings gone or badly damaged. School had been due to start within a few days and I would have been at volleyball practice in the school gym had it happened a few days later. The school gym was destroyed. What a strange experience.
I was 6 year old when the tornado went directly over our house. I will never forget how the supercell looked as it was approaching our house. To this day I have never seen a storm that looked that violent! My family and I nearly made it to the back door of our house before all the windows blew out. One of my brothers was at the high school for football practice and clearly remembers the entire team piled up in the hallway as the roof of the field house rippled like a wave before it was torn off. We were fortunate to come out of the ordeal with our lives.
My mom was 17 and attended Plainfield High when this happened. I grew up hearing a lot about how it affected her. I think the teacher that was killed was her history teacher, and there was a boy around her age that was out delivering papers when he got caught in it too.
Living in the midwest, you start to grow desensitized to just how dangeround tornados can be. This is a good reminder to me that if this tornado was the tiniest bit over in one direction, I might not have been born.
I was there I lived in Plainfield after moving from Chicago we moved there in 1989 and I was home alone and didn't know anything about tornadoes at 9 years old I was born in 1980 that tornado just missed our house and we only lost some shingles that's the tornado that made me fear and respect and eventually obsessed with tornadoes and I moved to Kansas when I was 20 and been chasing tornadoes ever since
Not surprisingly, that same tornado made me obsessed with them, too. "Green mammatus clouds"..... never saw anything like that before or since.
I recall this afternoon vividly. I worked at Fox Valley Mall and lived in the West side of Joliet. I recall the darkness, and watching as cars had to turn on their headlights at midday. No sirens and not realizing until it was time to drive home (normally via Rt 59 thru Plainfield) that I had to find another way home and that it hit both Plainfield and Joliet, close to my house and where my mom worked in Joliet.
The worst was seeing the names of the dead. I recognized 3 people from when I worked in the Plainfield branch I had transferred from weeks earlier. They were regular customers whom I’d gotten to know in the previous year. May they all rest in peace.
Years later while dating my soon to be husband, I found out my soon to be sisters in law lost everything when their apartment building was destroyed by that tornado.
Anyone living in Will County at the time could tell you where they were and what they were doing when it hit.
I worked at Fox Valley when I lived in Joliet. Did you get to experience driving home on 59 during the winter? There was nothing out there to block the snow. I drove home one night praying that the car in front of me was on the road, because all I could see was his tail lights. Ah, the memories.
@@carch7243haha I remember going to the mall from Romeoville via 59 in the dead of winter. Snow and ice covered roads. 59 is like 8-10 lanes wide now and last I checked...still under construction.
I remember those days growing up It kind of felt cozy when the street lights were on during the day
Great video Celton! I was born and raised in Missouri (still live here) and I have never heard of this storm. I couldn’t imagine a storm of that magnitude with no warning whatsoever. With hindsight, it makes you wonder if anyone could have been saved if the sirens would have been activated and the news stations mentioned at least a possibility of a tornado. Thanks for you hard work man, these are great and continue to get better!
I live in this town, and was born in the early 2000s. I heard lots of stories growing up, and still hear plenty to this day about peoples experiences with this tornado. I actually went to the rebuilt high school that was destroyed, and there's a whole memorial in one of the hallways to the tornado.
I was 19 yrs old living in Oswego Illinois when this tornado came through. It pretty much skimmed over the top of Oswego and only damaged a few buildings. At the time I lived with my family in a small neighborhood with cornfields behind it. After the tornado passed over Oswego, we could see where it landed and watched it tear through cornfields as it headed northeast toward Plainfield. I drove with a few friends through the country towards Plainfield, and by the time we arrived at highway 126 that goes through downtown Plainfield, the police had a roadblock set up a few miles south of Plainfield. I worked for demolition crew in Plainfield for the rest of that summer through fall tearing down the remains of houses that were destroyed by the tornado. That was the most difficult job I’ve ever had.
I grew up near where this tornado hit. I remember the sky turning green and then the wind picked up quite a bit with heavy rain. It went through fairly quickly, but we knew there was more to this storm due to damage and down trees even in the area where I lived. My older cousin lived next door and not too long after the storm went through he came over and said a tornado had gone through the Cedarwood Apartments and the authorities were looking for volunteers to help. He left to help with his brother. My mom, aunt, and I went driving around to see what happened (not a bright idea in hindsight). I remember we were going down one of the main roads through Joliet and signs were torn down, there was debris in the road, and parts of buildings blown off. I didnt realize how bad it was until I saw the Chicago Police drive by. At that point it sunk in how bad things had to be for Chicago emergency vehicles to drive 45 miles to come to where I live. There were emergency vehicles from literally everywhere you could think of. Roads were closed past a certain point so we never saw the exact spot where the tornado went through.
Amazing video Celton. Constantly stepping it up for the rest of creators making weather content. Keep it up!!
Appreciate it dude, the stuff you manage to create is witch sorcery to me lol
I remember this day and never will forget. Still have issues after all these years. I worked for the Village of Plainfield and was to be a senior at PHS.
I live in Plainfield, on 126, the house I’m in is old and somehow survived. It was a horrible day but I’m proud of how this community has built up better than before.
There is a building in the downtown area that was a house at one time and not only survived the F5 but rumor is there was a fire on that street way back and it’s the only building to survive both.
Just last week we had a tornado warning and everyone in that building went to the basement. The basement is old and dirty so it’s mostly a storage area. Someone had brought old chairs in the basement and happened to put them in a circle. The placement of chairs surprised a few people. I asked one of the owners if I could place some electric tea lights in a circle to really set the scene for next time. 😂
It’s actually a very interesting old home/ building. A few years ago during some renovations we found a staircase behind a wall. I’m glad this place is still around because anytime they work on the building you find something new and interesting.
I can confirm that every thing in Plainfield, Illinois has been recovered because I live in Plainfield, Illinois, and everything has been rebuilt, but it will never be the same used to be
Never be the same as it used to be. U braindead hick. 😂😂
@@skippydads99guy corrects ppls grammar but spells “you” as “u”…
Get a life bozo
@@skippydads99guy corrects ppls grammar but spells “you” as “u”…
Get a life bozo
@@skippydads99guy corrects ppls grammar but spells “you” as “u”
Get a life
@skippydads99 weve been typing on typo machines for over a decade. Corrections of this style have been irrelevant since like 2011. Catch up.
16.3k subs and you're putting out amazing content like this? Subbed! You deserve more!
I visited the area around Plainfield HS the next day. I was 20 years old and brought a disposable camera and lended my help where I could. It was a terrifying stomach sickening experience I'll never forget. Was like a massive bomb was dropped - very little structure of anything was left. My best photo is a two-foot piece of wood that pierced a wire fence like a bullet
Damn. That is insane. Do you still have the photos??
that’s insane. you should post a video of the photos
I cried when I saw [the devastation] and how NOTHING was recognizable. It truly was stomach turning.
My dad worked at the vulcan quarry at this time and he was part of the cleanup crew. He said they visited plainfield a day after and he said the damage was horrific and there was just nothing left. Its crazy how i live not even 15 minutes north of plainfield and the town rebounded since then.
When I moved to southern Minnesota I visited a friend who had recently moved to Chicago. Having a lifelong interest in severe weather I made the comment to her “can you believe we both moved to tornado alley at the same time?” She looked at me confused and slightly annoyed and responded “tornadoes can happen anywhere”. I was completely dumbfounded in her ignorance. 😅 But she was ignorant in a lot of things and we are no longer friends. I can’t have that kind of vibes around me. 😊
My parents didn't move to Plainfield until the late 90s but I always grew up hearing about this from teachers who experienced it when I was in school. Was very exited to see this video in my feed.
I actually go to PCHS right now and they have a statue near the school and have a big tornado memorial by one of the entrances. It’s fascinating, really.
PCHS aka PHS
Yeah I can imagine Plainfield central high makes sure this event isn’t forgotten.
My Mother was a member of the first graduating class that attended the old building for all four years {class of 1961}. She was working for the architects and structural engineers that were responsible for the design and oversaw construction of the new building. It was the last project she worked on, then retired.
@@roo302 That's awesome to hear, I graduated from PHS in 2021 and thought the building was just beautiful and unique.
This is unbelievable how this was unwarned. I can't imagine having a tornado destroy or slab my home without no warning. Keep it up, Celton!
That was what was so bizarre. We knew nothing until I got off my school bus and saw this funnel cloud in the distance headed right for us!
There was no warning. You said ‘without no warning’, but the video clearly states there was no warning at all.
@@Paniekzaaiertje ...huh
@@nik1128 I was talking to @L0qxnWx. He said he can't imagine having his home destroyed without no warning. 'Without no warning' means the same as 'with warning'. And the video states there was no warning, so his comment doesn't make any sense.
They claim that this storm changed the rules about setting off the sirens.
Went to school in Plainfield, always heard about how bad it was but had never seen the footage. Great video!
There isn't any footage, only the aftermath
This isn't footage. Use this very app as search the Plainfield tornado. That's footage
I lived in Plainfield across from Lake Renwick with my parents I worked at Dominick’s in Joliet when this storm hit….I remember driving to work that day around 11am thinking Wow!! It is so muggy while listening to the forecast on the radio saying conditions are ripe for some afternoon storms not really thinking much about it because it was almost September.Clocked in at 11:30 a few hours later the sky just kept getting darker and darker.. We had huge glass windows in the very front of the store and it looked darker than night and the store manager told everyone get into the back rooms!! 15 minutes later we came out and it was already getting clear.. A little while later my buddies parents came shopping and said don’t you have kin in Plainfield? I replied yes my parents live there,He said the Tornado touched down there it’s pretty bad you better get home especially by St.Mary’s church and the high school …My heart sank the church was right behind my house I clocked out and sped home only getting as far as Essington and Caton farm rd! First responders said you have to leave your car here and walk! Then I really panicked and starting jogging all the way to Von Esch rd and through those neighborhoods seeing all the destruction!! I’ll never forget it started crying and running faster thinking my folks were gone? I practically ran 5 miles without ever stopping once all the way home close to 59 and route 30 to find my stepfather pushing a broom down the driveway whilst drinking a beer I was relieved and concerned at the same time because even though they were safe they had no idea of the actual destruction behind them or in other areas that I had been through… My stepdad and I rode our ten speeds around all night helping folks anyway we could… 29 lost on that horrific day such a tragedy! I used to love storms! Whenever one comes through I think about those victims and families while I’m in my basement 😢😢❤️❤️🙏🏻🙏🏻
I was born in ‘89 and I grew up right outside Joliet in Shorewood, which is near Plainfield, and I vividly remember hearing about this for years. Didn’t know it was an F5 though!
Crazy how 30 years ago Plainfield was just a small country town. Now it's a huge.
Traffic is a nightmare
The whole area is built up. I was in Monee at that time. The sirens went off, my grandmother and I were in the basement just waiting for it to hit us. We were lucky it never made it that far. I was recovering from a badly broken arm, I wanted to go with our fire department. They were asking for extra help, but I knew I couldn't do anything to help with a broken arm.
It was a horrible storm. And I hope and pray that this area won't be hit again.
In 2000 I moved to Joliet, and I always remember the storm.
I was there and will never forget that day. What was not mentioned is that the death toll could have been extremely higher. Plainfield HS was supposed to have their first day of school the next day. If school started one day earlier, the school would have been full of kids.
I remember that
These videos seriously need more attention
I was in this storm going south on I-55 to St. Louis! I was working for Burlington Air Express delivering a load of auto parts to a Ford assembly plant! I remember everything that day like it happened yesterday! I entered I-55 off of I-171 around 3pm! When I was passing Bolingbrook I saw the most terrifying site I ever saw! To the west the storm clouds were the blackest ever seen by me! I knew this storm was bad at that point! I continued on thinking I could beat it, so I slammed on the gas and hauled ass! As I approached Plainfield I remembered both my tanks were on empty, so I was forced to stop get get some fuel really fast! As I am filling the tank a state trooper pulls in to gas up and I asked if there is a tornado and as soon as he said yes the rain started to come down sideways! I finished and proceeded to the on ramp for I-55 south and the wind was so intense that the cargo van felt I it was going to tip over! As I put some distance between me and Plainfield I looked in the rearview mirror and could see the ominous black storm getting farther away! I will never forget the experience!!!! !!!!!!!
There's an episode of the TV show "Storm Stories" which profiled the Plainfield, Illinois tornado of 1990 and one of the people interviewed was a woman named Mary-Pat Gabor. Mary-Pat was at home by herself with her sons as her husband was at work that day. When her sons were jolted awake from their afternoon nap by the sound of hail hitting the roof of their house; Mary-Pat took her sons to the front door to assure them that there was nothing wrong and they were safe. But her confidence vanished quickly when she looked up at the sky and saw that it was a sickly shade of green; a color she described as "pea soup green."
Amazing informative video, keep up the great work!
Happy new year btw
Thank you, happy new year :)
An unwarned tornado hit my house, killing 1 out of 4 of us. Had there been a warning we all wouldn’t be alive, since the basement was completely collapsed. Rest in peace Jaymi ❤
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I’m so sorry. Why weren’t there any sirens? That’s so awful
@@missyelliot6237 They said the need for the tornado warning was simultaneous with the touch down a few blocks away from my house.
R.I.P. Jaymi, have an amazing time in heaven/in a new life.
Dang, sorry for your loss. Hope no suffering. Did y'all do the closet or bathroom thing?
@@bdpage2023 no time to react, was watching tv in the living room, heard a gust of wind and then a few seconds later we all heard the tornado roaring. we tried running to the basement but only made it a few steps off the couches before we heard windows shattering and then everything went black. i was only 6 at the time, 23 now but remember it better than most days.
Very well explained. I’ve never seen how they form like this. Thank you! Scary stuff
amazing video on an absolutely terrifying tornado. its so scary that the Plainfield F5 was almost invisible to those in the path, you would have no idea
that a killer tornado is heading right toward you.
You deserve way more subs man. great video!
i grew up in this town about 15 years after it happened. i was told stories from about all my teachers in grade school about having their homes flattened in seconds. even almost 2 decades after this storm happened it still lived with the town and will forever
Nice coverage of a monster tornado. Everyone needs the intel to be aware of possible tornado formation in their area especially if the tornado sirens don’t trigger for warning. On April 27, 2011 in Alabama, our area sadly got to experience a devastating tornado. It was basically a historic day of how many tornadoes touched down in the U.S. Now I have a deep fear of tornadoes. RIP to the lives lost around those days and deep condolences to their families.
I remember that evening in 2011. I was just north of Birmingham. We had plenty of notice to take shelter. It didn't hit us. I found out later that the big ones there come through Tuscaloosa and head east.
This presentation was so thorough, comprehensive and complete- you are very talented at this!
Thank you!
The fact Chicago had a tornado yesterday and it hit O,Hare
My wife and I remember that day well. We were south bound on Lake Shore Drive in Chicago about 5PM. I looked to the west and saw that the sky was black, I told my wife this is tornado weather. When we got home we found out about Plainfield.
It's crazy how we just know
I remember this tornado like it was yesterday. I grew up just south of there, and was/am a huge weather geek. There was warnings, because otherwise I wouldn't have been glued to my weather radio and calling my aunt who lived in Shorewood, IL. This was pre-internet and pre-cable (for me living in a rural area), so there was 100% warnings. Regardless, the strength was way more intense than what our area would expect, as was the type of set-up, being in August, and being such an isolated storm. The scar left to the landscape always fascinated me, as I traveled across it for many years.
What he didn't mention in this video but I've seen in others, the warnings happened after it already hit. Also the tornado never made it to Shorewood. There was a warning for Shorewood but not for Plainfield.
@@debprivate7840 The op is saying that they were a huge weather freak. While others were relying on how humid, hot and a green sky. The op was glued to the weather radio. That's what gave them a head start on a possible tornado coming so they forewarned their aunt from another town. The op was just unsure about the size since nothing of the size came to that area
We in Europe need this kind of radar equipment too!
Until that kind of equipment becomes more available around the world, just setting up storm spotter networks and having basic education readily available for the public can really make a huge difference. While radar equipment is definitely important, meteorologists will tell you that eyes on the ground can also make a huge difference. Everyone should have the very basic education on what a tornado looks like, how it forms, and what to do is one is sighted. The equipment is useless when the people don't understand or pay attention to the danger heading their way.
I was teaching in an unairconditioned school that day in a nearby community. I left for home as soon as school was out and saw the sky in my rear view mirror. I had never seen a sky like that. By the time I got home, the tornado had hit. I watched the tv coverage later. And saw that the church I had been married in was destroyed. It was unbelievable. We had no school for several days. One of our students had been killed when he got off the school bus.
My father lived just east of Louis Joliet Mall. The tornado missed his house by 1/4 mile. A few minutes later, the tornado missed my mother’s house in Crest Hill by a similar margin. Both of their homes can be seen on the maps shown.
Great video! Your channel is highly underrated.