8 hospitalized after EF-3 tornado rips through Chicago suburb: 'Like a bomb went off'

The twister has left 22 houses uninhabitable.

June 21, 2021, 5:02 PM

An EF-3 tornado tore through the Chicago suburb of Naperville, Illinois, Sunday night, damaging over 130 homes and leaving 22 houses uninhabitable, fire officials said.

"It was like a bomb went off with all the debris in the streets," Ryan Puraleski told ABC News.

PHOTO: Damage to homes after a storm passed through Naperville, Illinois, June 21, 2021.
Damage to homes after a storm passed through Naperville, Illinois, June 21, 2021.
Ryan Cox Puraleski/Facebook
PHOTO: A home on the 1800 block of Princeton Circle is leveled after an overnight tornado swept through the area in Naperville, Ill., June 21, 2021.
A home on the 1800 block of Princeton Circle is leveled after an overnight tornado swept through the area in Naperville, Ill., June 21, 2021.
Paul Valade/Daily Herald via AP

Eight people were hospitalized following the late-night twister. One person was critically injured but has since been upgraded to fair condition, Naperville Fire Chief Mark Puknaitis said at a news conference Monday.

Some people had to be pulled from their rubble-filled homes, he said.

PHOTO: An aerial photo made with a drone shows damage after a tornado hit in a neighborhood in Naperville, Il., June 21, 2021.
An aerial photo made with a drone shows damage after a tornado hit in a neighborhood in Naperville, Il., June 21, 2021.
Tannen Maury/EPA via Shutterstock
PHOTO: Debris is scattered after storm passed through Naperville, Illinois, June 21, 2021.
Debris is scattered after storm passed through Naperville, Illinois, June 21, 2021.
Ryan Cox Puraleski/Facebook

Everyone is expected to survive, Puknaitis said.

The tornado also downed power lines, leaving about 450 customers without power.

PHOTO: People search for belongings and clean up after a tornado hit in a neighborhood in Naperville, Il., June 21, 2021.
People search for belongings and clean up after a tornado hit in a neighborhood in Naperville, Il., June 21, 2021.
Tannen Maury/EPA via Shutterstock
PHOTO: Woodridge, Ill., resident Jesse Wallace points out one of the severely damaged homes to his three-year-old son Chris Wallace, after a tornado passed through the area, June 21, 2021.
Woodridge, Ill., resident Jesse Wallace points out one of the severely damaged homes to his three-year-old son Chris Wallace, after a tornado passed through the area, June 21, 2021.
Shafkat Anowar/AP

Severe weather, including 11 tornadoes, also struck Alabama, as Tropical Storm Claudette slammed the South.

An EF-2 tornado struck East Brewton, Alabama, injuring 20 people, according to the National Weather Service. East Brewton police said two of the injured were life-flighted to hospitals.

PHOTO: Debris covers the street in East Brewton, Ala., June 19, 2021, after a suspected tornado spurred by Tropical Storm Claudette battered at least 50 homes in the small town just north of the Florida border.
Debris covers the street in East Brewton, Ala., June 19, 2021, after a suspected tornado spurred by Tropical Storm Claudette battered at least 50 homes in the small town just north of the Florida border.
Alicia Jossey via AP

At least three storm-related deaths were reported in Alabama this weekend.

In Tuscaloosa, a 24-year-old man and his 3-year-old son were killed when a tree fell on top of their house, according to Capt. Marty Sellers of the Tuscaloosa Police Department.

In Fort Payne, a 22-year-old woman drowned in floodwaters Saturday night, DeKalb County coroner Tom Wilson told ABC News.

ABC News' Alice Chambers, Max Golembo and Rachel Katz contributed to this report.

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