The tornado was eventually rated an EF-3 by the National Weather Service, meaning it had estimated wind speeds of between 136 mph and 165 mph
Credit: FOX 32 Chicago/Youtube
NEED TO KNOW
- A storm chaser captured the moment a man was pulled from underneath the rubble of his house after it was destroyed by a tornado
- Storm chaser and video journalist Scott Lasker said he encountered the trapped man while filming the damage in Streator, Ill., on June 11
- The tornado that devastated Streator was eventually rated an EF-3 by the National Weather Service, meaning it had estimated wind speeds of between 136 mph and 165 mph
A storm chaser, who was traveling through Illinois during a string of devastating tornadoes this week, captured the moment a homeowner was pulled from underneath the rubble of his house.
Speaking with CBS News Chicago, storm chaser and video journalist Scott Lasker recounted how he came across the trapped man after a tornado tore through his home in Streator, Ill., on Thursday, June 11.
According to Lasker, he had finished filming the moment a tornado touched down in the north-central Illinois town and had begun shooting some of the damage left behind by the storm when he heard a woman screaming for help.
The videographer said he ran over to the woman, who told him that her husband was stuck underneath a heavy door from their destroyed home.
Video footage shows the trapped man telling bystanders that he thought his leg might be broken, before Lasker attempted to lift the door off of him.
Lasker told CBS News that he handed his camera to the woman as he worked. Two police officers arrived soon after, and they were able to finish rescuing the man.
"Very crazy stuff," he said.
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Speaking with FOX 32 Chicago, Lasker also shared that he hadn't had to help a storm victim in that capacity before.
"To actually be a part of a dramatic, traumatic situation… this was a new one for me," he said. "I normally just hope to cover the tornado if there's gonna be one. It normally moves over a field or what have you, and then it's gone."
"You don't like to see when property is damaged, let alone when people are trapped," Lasker continued, adding that although the trapped man appeared to have some broken bones, he believed he would recover well.
Credit: Jim Vondruska/Getty
The tornado that devastated Streator was eventually rated an EF-3 by the National Weather Service, meaning it had estimated wind speeds of between 136 mph and 165 mph, according to CBS News.
Streator's mayor, Tara Bedei, said no deaths were reported in the city of about 12,000 people, according to the BBC, but the area sustained extensive damage.
Officials have confirmed that at least three other tornadoes touched down in Illinois and Indiana during Thursday's severe weather — and the number is expected to grow as storm damage surveys continue, CBS News reported.
ComEd was still working to restore power to the region by Friday night, June 12, the company said on social media after hundreds of thousands of people were left without power.
The BBC reported that air traffic controllers at Midway Airport in Chicago were forced to evacuate their tower due to a tornado warning, and thousands of flights were delayed or canceled.
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