NWS rates Sherman, Riverton tornadoes as EF2; severe weather may return to area Tuesday

The National Weather Service in Lincoln rated two of the tornadoes that hit Sangamon County early Friday evening as EF2 in magnitude.

The tornadoes in Sherman and Riverton caused damage to dozens of homes and businesses, but no injuries were reported.

There is a chance severe weather may revisit the Springfield area Tuesday evening.

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The storm system that struck Arkansas, Illinois and Indiana Friday left seven people dead, including a concertgoer at the Apollo Theatre in Belvidere, just outside Rockford. Five other people were seriously injured when the theatre's roof collapsed at a heavy metal show.

Three people were killed in Crawford County, in the eastern part of the state.

Gov. JB Pritzker visited the theatre Sunday with Alicia Tate-Nadeau, director of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency, and later visited Robinson.

On Saturday, Pritzker released a disaster proclamation, allowing the state to send assistance to Sangamon County and four other counties: DuPage, Boone, Crawford and Marion.

In remarks outside the theatre, Pritzker said he is also seeking federal disaster assistance.

“The devastating storms that swept through our state last night have upended communities and resulted in heartbreaking injury and loss of life,” Pritzker said in a prepared statement.

Damage assessments from around the state could come with the next couple of days, Tate-Nadeau.

Weather services use the EF-scale, which stands for Enhanced Fujita scale, to rate tornado intensity based on the severity of the damage they cause, including damage to businesses, homes and vegetation, said Rebekka Delaney, a meteorologist with the NWS.

The Sherman tornado packed winds of 125 to 130 MPH and went through Sherman and Williamsville.

Sangamon County Sheriff Jack Campbell told The State Journal-Register at least 30 to 40 homes in Sherman were damaged. Power lines were knocked out and crews had to address natural gas leaks in the area.

The Riverton tornado started just southeast of the village and continued on a path for more than 21 miles, into Logan County.

Parks Place Childcare Center was among the businesses damaged there. Nearly three dozen Walker Standardbreds escaped from horse barns when the tornado struck. Houses were also hit in Dawson.

A tornado that started about four miles northwest of Morrisonville in Christian County was rated as EF0 by the NWS.

Another tornado that tracked three miles east of Chapin in Morgan County was rated as EF-unknown because it was brief and did not cause damage.

The NWS reported baseball-size hail in Meredosia, also in Morgan County.

More: Tornado touches down north of Springfield, damaging homes, businesses

As of Sunday, Sangamon County was in an enhanced, or level 3 (out of 5) risk for tornadoes, damaging winds and large hail Tuesday, Delaney said.

The timing and strength of the low pressure system coming into the area was uncertain, Delaney said.

Temperatures for Tuesday, which is Election Day, will be near 80 with gusty winds most of the day, she added.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. Contact Steven Spearie: 217-622-1788, sspearie@sj-r.com, twitter.com/@StevenSpearie.

This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: Areas in Sangamon County are cleaning up from Friday's tornadoes