Weather

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Agencies offer tips to avoid lightning injuries

Two state agencies have partnered with the National Weather Service to declare this lightning safety awareness week.

The Illinois Emergency Management Agency and the Department of Natural Resources are reminding people that it's estimated that more than 1,000 people are injured in this country annually from lightning strikes. On average, another 62 die.

Monday, June 16, 2008

Storm downs power lines, trees

AmerenIP was working this morning to restore power to homes that lost it during a late-afternoon storm Sunday.

Nearly 2,100 people in Urbana and about two dozen in Champaign were without power Sunday evening, according to Ameren's Web site. As of 7 a.m. today, 114 customers in Urbana and two in Champaign remained without electricity.

Sunday, June 8, 2008

Motorists warned about standing water; 1 death in Coles

ARTHUR – Arthur Mayor David Conlin said he has never seen so much water in his community.

"There's more standing water around town than I've seen in my lifetime, and I'm 75 years old," Conlin said.

Friday, June 6, 2008

Problem keeping WEFT off air

CHAMPAIGN – Bad luck continues for WEFT 90.1 FM, Champaign-Urbana's community-based radio station.

Station manager Mick Woolf said that an attempt to install a repaired transmitter controller went awry Thursday when the controller shorted out for a second time.

Drier conditions expected after drenching rains

RURAL ARTHUR – A stiff breeze blew clouds across a fair blue sky and whistled in the trees Thursday – and pushed white-capped waves along the surface of lake-like flooding near Arthur.

The water stood higher than fields, fences and pastures, sometimes surging higher than the signs marking the roads beneath. It's a result of heavy rains to the area in the last few days and has marooned houses, inundated bridges and made travel difficult.