Severe thunderstorm spotted over McHenry, with dangerous winds, hail

McHenry County is under a severe thunderstorm warning until 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service.

A severe storm was spotted over McHenry at just before 6 p.m. Tuesday, with the weather service warning to expect “considerable tree damage” and large hail that would damage cars. Wind damage to roofs, mobile home and outbuildings was also part of the warning, with most of the county could potentially be affected.

The weather bureau located a severe thunderstorm near Woodstock about 5:30 p.m. Hazards from the storm include golf ball size hail and 60 mph wind gusts. People and animals outdoors will be injured and hail and damage to roofs and siding can be expected. Hail damage to windows and vehicles and wind damage to trees can also be expected.

Those affected should seek shelter in an interior room on the lowest floor of a building.

The warning follows one for the Harvard area, which was under a severe thunderstorm warning scheduled until 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service.

The Weather Service spotted a storm near Poplar Grove in Boone County about 4:45 p.m. that was moving east at 15 mph. Hazards include 60 mph wind gusts and quarter size hail. People can expect wind damage to roofs, siding and trees and hail damage to vehicles, according to the weather service.

The warning comes after a severe thunderstorm watch for McHenry and Lake counties that was in place until 4 p.m. Tuesday was canceled early. The region is still coping with dangerous heat levels.

The National Weather Service posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, about 2:30 p.m. that the temperature at O’Hare Airport reached 98 degrees, breaking the Aug. 27 high temperature record. The heat index was 114 degrees.

A severe thunderstorm watch was in place for McHenry County until 4 p.m. Tuesday but was called off just after 2:30 p.m. Tuesday. The weather bureau noted there is still a chance for storms Tuesday evening and some could become strong to severe.

The National Weather Service says there is a 40% to 50% chance of “scattered strong to severe” thunderstorms in late afternoon and evening Tuesday.

“Damaging winds are the primary threat, though isolated large hail is also possible. Storms may also produce locally heavy rainfall with the potential for localized flooding,” the weather service reported.

The severe storm watch was for counties along the Wisconsin border, including Winnebago, Boone, McHenry and Lake.

Though the watch was canceled, McHenry County continued to experience an extreme heat warning, which is set to expire at 10 p.m. Tuesday. Heat indexes are expected to peak between 105 and 115 degrees, the weather service said. The heat prompted early dismissal Tuesday for some schools in Woodstock School District 200 and earlier garbage pickup in some municipalities.

The heat prompted Pinemoor Pizza in Crystal Lake to announce it would be not open Tuesday.

“For the safety of our employees and customers we will be closed today due to excessive heat warning in effect,” the pizzeria posted on its Facebook page, adding it will reopen at 4 p.m. Wednesday.