October 31, 2024
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Fallen tree causes closure of Illinois route 2 near Oregon; road reopens late in the afternoon

By Earleen Hinton
Oregon Fire Chief Michael Knup walks near the site where a large tree fell across Illinois Route 2, just north of Oregon, on Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024 forcing the closure of the state highway from Fair Street in Oregon north to Margaret Fuller Drive. Crews were waiting at 1:30 p.m. for a crane to arrive to remove the tree. Electricity was knocked out for some residents north of Oregon.

Oregon Fire Chief Michael Knup walks near the site where a large tree fell across Illinois Route 2, just north of Oregon, on Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024, forcing the closure of the state highway from Fair Street in Oregon north to Margaret Fuller Drive. Crews were waiting at 1:30 p.m. for a crane to arrive to remove the tree. Electricity was knocked out for some residents north of Oregon. (Earleen Hinton)

OREGON — Strong winds caused a large tree to fall across Illinois route 2 Thursday morning, closing traffic on the state highway for several hours.

The tree, which was located in a resident’s yard on the west side of the highway, fell across both lanes of the highway and across electrical and other service wires. About 135 ComEd customers are without power.

The road was closed from Fair Street in Oregon, north to Margaret Fuller Road. At 1:30 p.m. Thursday, crews from ComEd and Asplundh, a tree removal company, were waiting for a large crane to arrive to lift the tree from the wires.

Motorists were advised to use alternate routes. The road reopened around 3:30 p.m.

Southbound traffic was backed up on Illinois 2 near Oregon after a large tree fell across the state highway on Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024. The road was closed from Fair Street in Oregon north to Margaret Fuller Drive as crews waited for a crane to arrive to remove the tree. Electricity was knocked out for some residents north of Oregon.

Southbound traffic was backed up on Illinois 2 near Oregon after a large tree fell across the state highway on Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024. The road was closed from Fair Street in Oregon north to Margaret Fuller Drive as crews waited for a crane to arrive to remove the tree. Electricity was knocked out for some residents north of Oregon. (Earleen Hinton)

A large tree fell across Illinois Route 2, north of Oregon, on Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024 forcing the closure of the state highway from Fair Street in Oregon north to Margaret Fuller Drive. Crews were waiting at 1:30 p.m. for a crane to arrive to remove the tree. Electricity was knocked out for some residents north of Oregon.

A large tree fell across Illinois Route 2, north of Oregon, on Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024 forcing the closure of the state highway from Fair Street in Oregon north to Margaret Fuller Drive. Crews were waiting at 1:30 p.m. for a crane to arrive to remove the tree. Electricity was knocked out for some residents north of Oregon. (Earleen Hinton)

A large tree fell across Illinois Route 2, just north of Oregon, on Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024 forcing the closure of the state highway from Fair Street in Oregon north to Margaret Fuller Drive. Crews were waiting at 1:30 p.m. for a crane to arrive to remove the tree. Electricity was knocked out for some residents north of Oregon.

A large tree fell across Illinois Route 2, just north of Oregon, on Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024 forcing the closure of the state highway from Fair Street in Oregon north to Margaret Fuller Drive. Crews were waiting at 1:30 p.m. for a crane to arrive to remove the tree. Electricity was knocked out for some residents north of Oregon. (Earleen Hinton)

A large tree fell across Illinois Route 2, north of Oregon, on Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024 forcing the closure of the state highway from Fair Street in Oregon north to Margaret Fuller Drive. Crews were waiting at 1:30 p.m. for a crane to arrive to remove the tree. Electricity was knocked out for some residents north of Oregon.

A large tree fell across Illinois Route 2, north of Oregon, on Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024 forcing the closure of the state highway from Fair Street in Oregon north to Margaret Fuller Drive. Crews were waiting at 1:30 p.m. for a crane to arrive to remove the tree. Electricity was knocked out for some residents north of Oregon. (Earleen Hinton)

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Earleen Hinton

Earleen Hinton

Earleen creates content and oversees production of 8 community weeklies. She has worked for Shaw Newspapers since 1985.