What started as light showers and a cold front formed into a tornado on Saturday morning around Kane County.
The tornado, confirmed by the National Weather Service, was based on The Enhanced Fujita scale, or EF, scale which measures the intensity of a tornado on a scale of 0 to 5. Wind speeds in this category typically range from 65 to 85 miles per hour.
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“We estimated the winds to be around 80 miles per hour,” said Kevin Doom, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.
The windstorm occurred between 11:06 a.m. and 11:10 a.m., and traveled approximately 3.7 miles according to Doom.
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“The tornado dropped down in far northwestern Kendall County, then lifted eastward into Kane County, and left off the town center in Big Rock,” Doom said. “We did have at least one report of a power pole that had snapped as well as some downed trees throughout the area.”
Doom explained that a squall line, which is a thin line of showers ahead of a cold front, was the origin of the tornado’s making.
“Along the leading edge, it’s not uncommon for there to be little breaks and that results in localized circulation that can sometimes turn into a tornado,” Doom said. “And that’s what happened yesterday.”
The last tornado to hit Kane County was in August 2021.
tatturner@chicagotribune.com
