Chicago Tribune from Chicago, Illinois • Page 1-5

Chicago Tribune Section 1 Monday, November 18, 2013 SUNDAY'S SEVERE WEATHER Soldier Field's stands evacuated for storm Fans report being stuck in downpour as crowd slow in getting to shelter By Melissa Harris and Kim Geiger Tribune reporters The Baltimore Ravens had just kicked a field goal for a 10-point first-quarter lead over the Bears at Soldier Field when something even more ominous occurred an evacuation order. "Attention: Please clear the stadium seating area and relocate to the nearest covered concourse" said a message that flashed on the video screens. "Please remain calm and leave the seating area in an orderly fashion." A severe storm that had spawned tornadoes was approaching the stadium, forcing a rare evacuation and delay of the game. The NFL feared lightning strikes. Officials repeated the evacuation instructions over the loudspeakers as fans started filing out of their seats and into the sheltered area They waited there for nearly two hours for the worst of the storm to pass.

"I was really worried" said Lindsay O'Brien, of Chicago. "You could see the clouds rolling, and the wind would pick up and debris started flying. The flags were flying one way, and then another." Once out of the pelting rain, fans drank and ate until the concessions were closed and monitored the weather on their phones. Some ventured into the downpour to buy beer. Chants of "Let's go Bears!" erupted, keeping spirits high.

ADAM WOLFFBRANDTTRIBUNE PHOTO A flash flood rushes down Soldier Field stairs as fans take shelter underneath. An NFL spokesman said lightning caused officials to suspend play. don Rudd, of Valparaiso, Ind. "Everybody stayed calm, and everybody got out." O'Brien said she and her husband watched in frustration as a single security officer was unable to usher the crowds into the evacuation area The couple waited in the stands for more than 30 minutes, O'Brien said. "I was aware of what was coming our way, but we just couldn't get out," O'Brien said.

"There was nowhere for us to go." By the time they reached cover, the O'Briens, who were at their first Bears game, were soaked, cold and ready to head home. They missed the come-from-behind victory as the Bears defeated the Ravens 23 to 20 in overtime. An NFL spokesman said the decision to suspend play was based on lightning in the area "Weather is unpredictable, and there was a chance that the game could proceed without a delay," said spokesman Michael Si-gnora "When lightning dictated that a stoppage was necessary, the procedures were followed." About two hours after the evacuation, players retook the field and fans were allowed back in their seats, but a strong wind kept blowing. Litter spewed out of overturned garbage cans, and steady gusts sent it flying through the stands. A few of the players said the focus in the locker room remained on the game, not the weather.

"We came in. We talked," said David Bass, Bears rookie defensive end. "Every body spoke on what the other team was doing and how we can play against it and come back and get this win. "After that, they came and gave us energizing foods Gatorade bars, Nu-tri-Grain bars, oranges. Things like that.

Then we just got to put our legs up and relax." Tribune reporters David Haugh and Fred Mitchell contributed. mmharristribune.com kgeigertribune.com Survivors consider themselves lucky As the evacuation drew on, workers at concession stands closed their windows, causing a moment of protest from the crowd. "They closed the concessions I heard because people were getting a little rowdy near the food," said Candace Zorn, of Naper-ville. In parts of the stadium, the slow pace of the evacuation left some fans feeling trapped, and cold. "They kept repeating on the loudspeaker for us to clear the area as if we had anywhere to go," said Bran News reports of twisters touching down in the Peoria area served as a warning to residents farther north.

In the small city of Diamond, outside Joliet, Lisa Glisson rushed to a dance studio to check on her two children. Then the tornado sirens went off. She said one teen at the studio invited everyone to her house to seek shelter in its basement, so about 30 children piled into cars and sped off for safety. "It was Go! Go! Go!" Glisson said. In the basement, the children talked and texted on cellphones to distract themselves, she said.

"You could feel the change in the air," Glisson said. "You could hear the wind going over and it just felt heavy, surrounding you." The storm left the children and the house unscathed, but nearby homes were severely damaged. Officials in Diamond and neighboring Coal City reported hundreds of homes damaged. They ordered the evacuation of one hard-hit subdivision in Diamond. 25 Soldier Field: Continued from Page 1 across the state Sunday.

Officials confirmed five fatalities at least one in Washington and four in southern Illinois. Officials expressed surprise that more people weren't killed given the wide expanse of destruction. They attribute it to early warnings and even the time of day: The twisters hit the Peoria area around the time of church services, so fewer people were at home. The warnings came from news reports, public sirens and text messages. Theresa Vancil said she got the warning from her smartphone while she was in labor at a hospital in Pekin as a batch of powerful storms started to rip across the Peoria area Vancil said she looked out the window and saw a funnel cloud forming in the distance.

She alerted the nurses, and then patients flooded into the maternity ward hallways for safety. Vancil wasn't hurt and her home was still standing. "I do feel so bad for everybody who lost everything," Vancil said. Sunday after a tornado hit Washington, a central Illinois city of ZBIGNIEW BZDAKTRIBUNE PHOTO 15,000 just east of Peoria. second car was a pile of twisted metal in his neighbor's yard.

"It's kind of the most horrible thing you can go through," Larsen said. Tribune reporters Joseph Ryan and Manya Brachear Pashman contributed. brubintribune.com mmanchirtribune.com gziezulewicztribune.com tub and just held on to each other," Larsen said. The air pressure changed. Their ears popped.

They heard what sounded like buckets of rocks being thrown against their home, he said. Hours later, Larsen, 35, stood amid debris in his driveway, packing his now-damaged Toyota Camry with belongings that were Dan Elbert, left, helps friends For many Sunday, the only warning they got was the sight of an ominous funnel cloud. Michael Larsen and his family were on their way to church about five miles from their home in Washington when they saw the twister. They immediately headed back home, grabbed a flashlight and "got in the Month Chicago JAN. From Path of rare November tornadoes Severe storms and tornadoes tore across Illinois on Sunday, killing several people and destroying numerous homes and structures.

Nearly 80 tornadoes were reported across the midwest to the National Weather Service, the first in Illinois striking near Peoria just before 11 am. Tornadoes in November are a rare occurrence, with most coming in April, May and June. Since 1950 there have been only two tornado deaths in Illinois in November. ILLINOISTORNADOES BY MONTH 1950 to 2010 TORNADOES BY YEAR lllinios WHERE TORNADOES WERE SUNDAY As reported to the National Weather Service gathered from his now un-livable home: some furniture, photos, clothes and a few of his 5-year-old son's toys. The double-car garage on the software engineer's ranch home is gone.

Paneling and gutters are ripped away. Larsen said he found landscaping bricks from his yard one house down. His Injuries Deaths 125" 85 28 286 1,703 594 289 96 450 93 33 139 327 1 6 8 92 25 9 2 35 2 1 2 19 25" 1980 For Bears game delayed for almost 2 hours, fans evacuated Joliet rf KEY: Possible tornado event Miles Pekin: Dozens injured, numerous homes destroyed Peoria: Treated dozens patients at St. Francis Medical Center Washington: At least one dead, entire blocks leveled Coal City: Four injured, buildings knocked down Frankfort: Confirmed touchdowns Tornadoes 30 29 161 524 505 451 138 164 78 43 68 48 FEB. MARCH APRIL MAY JUNE JULY AUG.

SEPT. OCT. NOV. DEC. Kankakee 2013, through October: 25 '90 2000 '10 '13 TRIBUNE Bloomington SOURCES: Illinois State climatologist office, National Weather Service, news reports.