Sanders announced that he would visit tornado-damaged areas on Saturday and meet with Arkansans affected by the storm in Little Rock.
A severe weather event in northeastern Illinois and northwestern Indiana caused «widespread wind damage with multiple tornadoes,» thunderstorms and scattered hail in the area, according to a preliminary report from the National Metereological Service.
State police confirmed that three people were killed in Indiana, and a tornado in Boone County, Illinois, specifically in the city of Belvidere, killed a 50-year-old man and injured 28 others when the roof of a concert hall collapsed. collapsed Friday night at the Apollo. Theater. Of the 28 people who were taken to the hospital, five had serious injuries, according to Belvidere firefighters.
Belvidere officials could not speak about any warnings given to concertgoers, or whether they were advised to move to safety. The loud concert may have prevented attendees from hearing the tornado sirens that sounded in the area Friday night.
It is not confirmed how many tornadoes hit Illinois and Indiana, but the National Weather Service reported many areas with structural damage and potential tornadoes, including Baileyville, Belvidere, Mendota, and downtown Batavaia in Illinois and Merillville in Indiana.
The severe weather event for northern Illinois and northwestern Indiana has come to an end, according to the Local office of the National Weather Service in Chicago.
In Arkansas, weather conditions are expected to be calmer on Saturday across the state.
«Much calmer conditions are expected across the state today before another round of rain moves from Sunday to Sunday night,» according to a cheep from the National Weather Service field office in Little Rock. «Chances for severe weather are very low through Tuesday when our next strong storm system approaches.»
denis romero, phil helsell and Tim Stelloh contributed.