More than 80,000 ComEd customers still remain without power Wednesday after severe weather — including 70 mph straight line winds and at least four confirmed tornadoes — ravaged the Chicago area Monday.
The greatest damage spanned the Chicago suburbs, including in Lansing; Glen Ellyn; Country Club Hills; Hazel Crest; Harvey and Orland Park, where EF-1 and EF-0 tornadoes tore through. The storms left trees falling on homes, structures destroyed and power lines cut.
As of 5:30 a.m. Wednesday, 82,698 ComEd customers, including commercial businesses, had power outages, the utility’s outage map showed.
“We know being without power is difficult,” a message on ComEd’s website said. “More than 80% of affected customers have been restored following severe storms that produced four tornadoes and widespread damaging winds. Crews continue working around the clock to safely restore power, including in areas with significant damage.”
If your power is still out, how long will the food in your refrigerator last?
According to the Illinois Department of Public Health, food can remain safe for hours if you don’t open either the refrigerator or freezer doors, but times vary.
“If the doors stay closed, food will stay safe up to: 4 hours in a refrigerator, 48 hours in a full freezer, 24 hours in a half-full freezer,” a June 2025 post from IDPH said, after a bout of major storms and confirmed tornadoes ripped through the state.
If the power outage lasts longer than four hours, “throw away refrigerated food like meat, poultry, fish, eggs, and milk,” IDPH said. If food in the freezer is partially or completely thawed, it can be safely re-frozen, but only if it still contains ice crystals or is 40°F or below.
The Centers for Disease Control recommends buying dry ice or block ice to keep food safe.
“Have a cooler and frozen gel packs ready in case you have to remove food from the refrigerator to keep it cold,” the CDC said.
Any food that has an unusual color, odor, texture or that feels warm to the touch should be thrown out, IDPH said.
“Never taste a food to decide its safe,” the department said.
In addition to keeping your fridge and freezer doors closed, the Illinois Emergency Management Agency and Office of Homeland Security advised people to unplug televisions, computers, washers and dryers, fans, lights and small appliances, “especially if they were in use when the power went out.”
ComEd’s website says it does not offer property damage claims for factors beyond their control, including storms. However, homeowners and renters may be able to file claims for spoiled food through their insurance companies.
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