July 21, 2008 Storm / Tornado

Yesterday morning at 6 AM our cat, Jean-Claude, jumped on me. Before I became bitter from the rude awakening I got distracted by a loud thunder followed by a strong storm. Inclement weather had been a constant in this area so I didn't worry. I didn't scold the cat either.

I didn't think much of it until I drove to work. The scene was a complete shock. It literally looked like a natural disaster scene from a movie. The streets were a total devastation, trees snapped in half, electric wires all over the place, traffic lights busted, no electricity, and etc.

As soon as I turned into the parking lot of our office, I noticed that our sign had been snapped in half - severely torn down. I also noticed that a part of our office roof was across the street. Some streets were closed, a semi was turned over in the freeway, metal and electric poles fell on cars. It seemed so surreal.

Many businesses and residents around the area are in total devastation of the natural disaster. I hope at least the electricity will be restored soon since I cant go to work without it. Days off are nice, but it makes a difference on the paycheck. The Illinois side got hit pretty hard, but Iowa is doing all right.

If you look closely, you can see the tornado in some of the photos below. Post Tornado photos also included.
(click here for more photos)