91³Ô¹ÏÍø

Watch CBS News
Local News

Recovery efforts underway after reported tornado in Lena, Illinois causes extensive damage

By
Sara Tenenbaum
Sara Tenenbaum
Senior Web Producer, CBS Chicago
Sara Tenenbaum is the Senior Digital Producer for CBS News Chicago, overseeing editorial operations and social media, and covering breaking, local and community news.
Read Full Bio
Sara Tenenbaum,
Victor Jacobo
Victor Jacobo
Reporter
Victor Jacobo is a reporter for CBS News Chicago who joined the team in August 2025.
Read Full Bio
Victor Jacobo,
Asal Rezaei
Asal Rezaei
Reporter
Asal Rezaei joined CBS2 Chicago as a general assignment reporter in August 2021.
Read Full Bio
Asal Rezaei

/ CBS Chicago

Recovery efforts are underway on Saturday after a tornado touchdown has been in Lena, Illinois, about 48 miles west of Rockford.

The tornado was part of a massive storm system that is barreling toward Chicago Friday afternoon.

A tornado warning was at 4:45 p.m. CT, the National Weather Service said. Video from a livestream in Lena shows the massive, rotating storm descending on the town.

There is extensive damage in the storm's wake, according to public officials. The Stephenson County Sheriff's Office posted on social media, asking people to avoid going to Lena at all. 

"There is no way to get into town due to trees and wires down," the post said. "Emergency Services are assisting people per Sheriff Stovall."

The sheriff's office said no deaths or serious injuries have been reported from the tornado.

"We are extremely fortunate that this storm did not result in loss of life or serious injury," Sheriff Steve Stovall said in a statement. "Our focus remains on ensuring the safety of our residents, securing the affected areas, and supporting the Village of Lena as recovery efforts move forward."  

The Village of Lena Police Department issued an urgent public safety alert on, writing in part, "Another storm is moving toward our area. We're already dealing with damage from the earlier tornado, and conditions could get worse quickly. Take shelter now."

"Do not go out to look at damage," the post warns. "Stay off the roads. Our crews are out working, and we need the roads clear so they can do their jobs safely. If you're able, check on neighbors—but only if you can do it safely."

Gov. JB Pritzker said in a post on his social media accounts that the Illinois Emergency Management Agency has responded to Lena and is coordinating with local officials to offer the state's full support.

"Please follow any local guidance and stay safe," Pritzker wrote.

Photos from the town show massive trees snapped by high winds and toppled over, blocking off roads.

027424b9-c56d-40b5-bb27-34a64951ad44.jpg

At 6:20 p.m., the Stephenson County Sheriff's Office posted to social media that Lena is "Shut down" as they brace for a second round of storms.

"There will be NO traffic in or out of town per Sheriff Stovall until further notice. Emergency Services are assisting with storm damage," the .

The storm toppled trees, knocked down power lines, and left the ground littered with debris.

"We just had a funnel cloud come through from the … it looked like it came through from the southwest of us and was pouring through, but you could see it form," said one Lena resident, named Rich.

People took cover as tornado sirens sounded and power was lost.

"The electricity went out, and I took the dog and went down in the basement in the shower, and I heard a big old crash, and I thought, 'Oh, well, there goes the roof!' but it wasn't," said another Lena resident named Marcia.

Instead, what she heard was a large tree falling in her yard.

As nightfall came, people throughout the village continued to clean up debris and repair damaged roofs. Crews said the tight-knit community didn't hesitate to help however they could.

"We sent out the calvary, got out here, and the community started kicking in, started bringing in dumpsters, started cleaning up to get people through and make sure everybody's safe. So, that's what we like doing," Kenneth Quinn said.

On Saturday morning, officials said efforts will continue to restore power and services to residents. 

Schools with students inside may have been damaged; no injuries reported

Radio traffic from public safety officials in Stephenson County said the National Weather Service contacted them about a large and "extremely dangerous" tornado just west of Lena. According to the radio traffic, there were reports that part of the roof came off Lena High School and also damage at the elementary school. Both schools had students in them at the time the storm hit, according to the radio traffic.

No injuries were reported, and the students were kept safe inside as the storm passed over, but the radio conversation discusses "fairly extensive damage" to the exteriors.

School officials and Lena officials have not yet released any official details about the extent of the storm damage. 

Lena is about 120 miles west of Chicago.

In:

© 2026 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
const link = doc.createElement('link'); link.rel = 'stylesheet'; link.href = '/fly/fly/bundles/cbsnewscontent/css/cmp-banner.min.css?v=fd53910ecf4604072044ab7c46d9b028'; doc.head.appendChild(link); doc.body.innerHTML = CONSENT_MESSAGE; } else { el.insertAdjacentHTML('afterend', CONSENT_MESSAGE); } }); } function hidePrivacyMessage() { // Remove from the main document document.querySelectorAll(`.${CONSENT_MESSAGE_CLASS}`).forEach(el => el.remove()); // Remove from inside any iframes document.querySelectorAll('iframe').forEach(iframe => { const doc = iframe.contentDocument || iframe.contentWindow.document; doc.querySelectorAll(`.${CONSENT_MESSAGE_CLASS}`).forEach(el => el.remove()); }); } function activateGatedScripts() { // Handle both new format (cmp-gated-script) and old OneTrust/Ketch format (optanon-category-4) const gatedScripts = Array.from(document.querySelectorAll('script.cmp-gated-script, script.optanon-category-4')); // Activate scripts sequentially with a small delay to avoid timing issues let delay = 0; gatedScripts.forEach(function(placeholder, index) { setTimeout(function() { // Skip if already processed if (placeholder.hasAttribute('data-cmp-processed')) { return; } placeholder.setAttribute('data-cmp-processed', 'true'); const newScript = document.createElement('script'); newScript.type = 'text/javascript'; // Try new format first (data-cmp-src), then fall back to old format (data-src) const src = placeholder.getAttribute('data-cmp-src') || placeholder.getAttribute('data-src'); if (src) { newScript.src = src; } else if (placeholder.textContent) { // Inline script - just copy the content newScript.textContent = placeholder.textContent; } // Handle new format attributes (data-cmp-attrs) - for both inline and external scripts const attrs = placeholder.getAttribute('data-cmp-attrs'); if (attrs) { const tempDiv = document.createElement('div'); tempDiv.innerHTML = '
<\/div>'; const tempAttrs = tempDiv.firstChild.attributes; for (let i = 0; i < tempAttrs.length; i++) { // For external scripts, allow defer/async. For inline scripts, skip them (not valid) if (src || (tempAttrs[i].name !== 'async' && tempAttrs[i].name !== 'defer')) { newScript.setAttribute(tempAttrs[i].name, tempAttrs[i].value); } } } // Copy other attributes from old OneTrust format for (let i = 0; i < placeholder.attributes.length; i++) { const attr = placeholder.attributes[i]; // Skip attributes we've already handled or don't want to copy if (!['class', 'data-src', 'data-type', 'data-cmp-src', 'data-cmp-attrs', 'data-cmp-processed', 'type', 'async', 'defer', 'src'].includes(attr.name)) { newScript.setAttribute(attr.name, attr.value); } } placeholder.parentNode.replaceChild(newScript, placeholder); // If external script, manually trigger window.onload handlers after it loads // This handles widgets that use window.onload for initialization if (src) { newScript.addEventListener('load', function() { // If page already loaded and script set a new onload handler, trigger it if (document.readyState === 'complete' && window.onload) { const originalOnload = window.onload; window.onload = null; // Clear temporarily to prevent loops originalOnload(); // Execute the handler } }); } }, delay); delay += 500; // 500ms delay between each script to allow full loading }); } cbsoptanon.onScriptsReady(function(cmp) { cmp.ot.targetingAllowed(function(allowed) { if (!allowed) { showPrivacyMessage(); } else { activateGatedScripts(); } }); cmp.ot.awaitInitialConsent(function(consent_model) { cmp.ot.addOnConsentChangedHandler(function() { cmp.ot.targetingAllowed(function(allowed) { if (allowed) { hidePrivacyMessage(); activateGatedScripts(); } else { showPrivacyMessage(); } }); }); }); });