Rockford Fire Department Division Chief Matthew Knott speaks Friday April 10, 2015 at a news conference in Kirkland Illinois about the tornado that hit the small community of Fairdale Illinois on Thursday. Knott said one person, a 67-year-old woman, died and seven people were injured. The tornado impacted all of the roughly 50 homes in Fairdale, destroying many of them. (AP Photo/Sara Burnett) (The Associated Press)
FAIRDALE, Ill. – A large tornado that hit the tiny northern Illinois town of Fairdale has left one person dead, seven injured and more than a dozen homes destroyed.
DeKalb County coroner Dennis Miller says a 67-year-old woman was found dead inside her home after the tornado hit around 7:15 p.m. Thursday. Seven others were hospitalized.
Authorities said early Friday that they had searched every structure in the town for additional victims. DeKalb County Sheriff Roger Scott says authorities are in the process of accounting for every resident, including those who may have left before the storm.
Approximately 20 additional homes were severely damaged or destroyed in nearby Ogle County, where no deaths or significant injuries were reported.
A wide swath of the county, from Texas to Michigan and across the upper Midwest, experienced severe weather Thursday.
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