EF1 tornado barrels through Justice and Bridgeview

An uprooted tree caved in the back of this garage in Justice late Monday night. (Photos courtesy of Justice Public Works)

By Carol McGowan

An EF1 tornado, packing winds of 90 miles per hour, swept through Justice and Bridgeview Monday night.

Village of Justice Public Works Director Joe Cekus said he knew trouble was on the way.

“I was looking in the sky for rotation and I heard a train,” he said. “I quickly realized that the train by me is in the other direction. Before that, it was so quiet.”

Cekus said the official report from the National Weather Service said that the tornado happened quickly, lasting from 9:37 to 9:40 p.m.

“It started by the I & M Canal, moved east to Justice, through the (Resurrection) cemetery, then into Bridgeview. It was confirmed to have been 2.1 miles long, and 75 yards wide.”

Cekus said the worst hit area in Justice was from Garden Lane to Cork Avenue, and 75th Street to 76th Place.

Power was lost by 349 homes. Most outages were restored Tuesday, or by 5 a.m. Wednesday.

Cekus said the village workers did a great job with the clean up along with help from neighboring Willow Springs.

“We worked fast to have all streets passable. We had help from Willow Springs Public Works. They had three of their guys and their chipper truck helping us.  We have a very good relationship with them.”

He also praised ComEd for their fast work given the damage that was done.

“Nobody was hurt. Thank God everyone was safe. ComEd was great working to get the power lines restored despite the damage done to the lines. We had big trees uprooted and downed, a few garages were knocked down. A few sheds and small structures were destroyed or damaged.  We have a lot of tarps on roofs and some broken windows.”

Cekus said there was no damage to any businesses.

“It’s important to be alert during bad weather.  We sounded the siren when we first got the tornado warning, and sounded it again right before it hit.”

People being alerted may have helped them move to a safe spot quickly.

Justice Mayor Kris Wasowicz was proud of the work his village did after the twister swept through.

“We did the inspection of the area until 3:00 Tuesday morning. ComEd was very helpful and were very responsive working under the circumstances. The tornado went through on an angle and did extensive damage to power lines. We appreciate their work and them being responsive.”

As of Friday, only a few homes were still without power.

“Insurance companies can be another story,” Wasowicz said. “I don’t understand how they operate. I hope they will work with residents. I don’t believe there’s enough damage to declare a disaster under FEMA guidelines. Kudos to my Public Works Department for the cleanup they did to help our resident.  I have nothing but praise for them and the our Police Department in how this was handled.”

A fallen tree lies on electric lines in Justice Tuesday morning.

In Bridgeview, the worst hit area was 73rd, 74th, and 75th streets just east or Roberts Road, as well as the area where Village Hall is located.

The Bridgeview Public Works Department said hundreds of home were without power during the worst of it.

The water plant and dome were operating on generators.

“Our crew was out right after it hit and worked until 2 a.m. to make sure the roads were clear allowing people to get in and out and emergency responders to get around if needed,” said a Public Works spokesman.

“We borrowed the chipper from Lyons Township and our guys went to work to get the job done.”

Within two days, Bridgeview had filled two 30-yard dumpsters with chips.

“We’re doing what we can by the streets, sidewalks and driveways that we maintain.”

In hardhit Resurrection Cemetery, the cleanup of toppled and uprooted trees continued for days.

On Wednesday, crews could be seen trying to clear what trees had already been cut, and still trying to get to areas that had yet to be touched.

It was mainly tree damage at the cemetery but a few monuments and statues were also damaged by the high winds.