BRAIDWOOD – The storm that tore through Coal City also created some havoc at an Interstate 55 interchange in Braidwood where a motel and gas station were damaged, power lines were blown down onto the interstate, and three trucks rolled over.
One person was injured in the truck rollovers, according to state police. He was taken to Morris Hospital with minor injuries.
There were no other injuries reported, although 10 people and two dogs staying at the Sands Motel had to be relocated, according to Braidwood police.
Three houses and a pole barn in the same area around the Reed Road interchange sustained some damage, said Harold Damron, director of the Will County Emergency Management Agency.
Damron said the Reed Road interchange with I-55 is the only area in Will County believed to be the hit by the same tornado that destroyed homes in Coal City. The damage in Braidwood was lighter.
The Sands Motel sustained roof damage, Damron said.
Braidwood Police Records Clerk Lynda Miner said about 10 people and two dogs were moved out of the Sands Motel after it sustained damage.
"They were relocated here to our City Hall," Miner said. "From there, they went to the United Methodist Church in Coal City."
The church was being used as a shelter for people displaced by the tornado.
Power lines were knocked down onto I-55 closing lanes in both directions about 10 p.m. in the area of the Reed Road interchange, state police said.
Within the next several minutes, three commercial trucks rolled over on the interstate, state police said. Two of the rollovers were listed as property damage only.