On This Day 34 Years Ago Tragedy In Plainfield

It is the 34th anniversary of the Plainfield tornado. At the time it was the strongest tornado to hit the United States. The EF-5 had wind speeds of 260 miles per hour. The tornado struck at 3:28 p.m., and struck Plainfield, Crest Hill and parts of Joliet. Twenty-nine people died that day and 350 people were injured. Following the deadly tornado, the National Weather Service upgraded their technology to detect tornadoes and alert residents. The NWS was using a Doppler Radar system from WWII.

The Joliet Area Historical Society released a video called “8 minutes in August” featuring WGN’s meteorologist Tom Skilling and WJOL’s Scott Slocum. Video below.