The National Weather Service continues to confirm tornadoes in the Northwest Indiana-Chicago area that occurred during storms Monday night July 15, 2024, and Valparaiso is now on the list. The weather service Chicago office says it has extended the Cedar Lake to Crown Point tornado track to Valparaiso, an EF-1 tornado with a maximum width of 300 yards, estimated peak winds of 90 MPH, traveling over 29 miles in 28 minutes. The tornado “continued across I-65 through eastern Lake County and into Porter County. Damage along this part of the path was to trees as the tornado had weakened a bit. However, the tornado did re-intensify as it tracked into Valparaiso,” the National Weather Service summary said, and the tornado lifted just north of Evans Avenue. The National Weather Service said a fatality in Cedar Lake during the severe weather when a tree fell onto a house was caused by straight-line winds south of the tornado’s track. The weather service also earlier confirmed an EF-0 tornado occurred with a maximum width of 100 yards traveling 13-point-7 miles from Shelby in south Lake County to Wheatfield Township in northern Jasper County. As of Thursday night July 18, a total of 22 tornadoes have been confirmed in the Chicago forecast area, tying the daily record for July 15, and meteorologists are continuing to analyze areas of damage during the derecho event. Here is a link for updates and more information.
The Porter County Emergency Management Agency says it has requested the Indiana Department of Homeland Security’s (IDHS) assistance in conducting damage assessments of properties from the storm Monday night July 15, 2024. A news release says IDHS teams will be in Porter County on Monday, July 22 to survey damage and most likely remain until Wednesday, July 24. Officials say this will help IDHS and Porter County determine if thresholds that trigger government assistance have been met. Porter County Emergency Management Director Lance Bella stated, “This is the next step to developing a course of action in the disaster recovery process.” Residents of Porter County are still being encouraged to contact Indiana 211 to report severe storm damage. Agricultural damage should be reported to the Purdue Extension, officials said.
