Midwest, Great Lakes brace for more severe storms

U.S. Midwest, Great Lakes brace for more severe storms after night of tornadoes By Kerry Breen Kerry Breen News Editor Kerry Breen is a news editor at CBSNews.com. A graduate of New York University's Arthur L. Carter School of Journalism, she previously worked at NBC News' TODAY Digital. She covers current events, breaking news and issues including substance use. Read Full Bio Kerry Breen April 18, 2026 / 8:59 AM EDT / CBS News Add CBS News on Google Communities across the Midwest are starting the cleanup process after multiple tornadoes touched down and severe weather struck areas from the Great Lakes to Texas. Another round of severe thunderstorms is forecast across parts of the Southern Plains, Mississippi Valley and Great Lakes on Saturday afternoon and into the night, according to the National Weather Service. Over 70,000 customers in the Midwest and Great Lakes regions are without power as of Saturday morning, according to the tracking site poweroutage.us. Most of the outages are in Illinois and Missouri. At least one tornado touched down in Rochester, Minnesota, about 90 miles south of Minneapolis, on Friday. David Vetsch said the storm sounded "like a freight train." The main part of the tornado hit his 89-year-old father's house, Vetsch said. While the house took extensive damage, his father was unharmed. Blake Wight said Rochester residents are working together to clear the damage. "I don't even know who a lot of these people are that are out helping," Wight said. "Our neighborhood is pretty good about watching out for each other." In Lena, Illinois, another tornado knocked out power and caused extensive damage on Friday afternoon. Downed trees and wires made the village impossible to enter, according to the Stephenson County Sheriff's Office. Photos from Lena show massive trees toppled over and blocking roads. A Lena resident identified as Marcia said she heard a tree fall in her front yard.  "The electricity went o...