DECATUR, Ill. (WAND) - Thousands of people are without power after destructive and dangerous storms moved through Central Illinois on Wednesday.

As of 10:45 p.m. Thursday, PowerOutage.com reported the following counties with estimated and approximate outages:

  • Macon County - 2,600
  • Coles County - 2,800

The outages have dramatically come down since earlier Thursday where more than 20,000 people were without power across more than eight WAND counties.  

Ameren Manager Brian Bretsch gives an estimate of when things will be up in the community. 

"We have other resources coming to the area, and right now our global estimated safe restoration time for folks in Macon County is 11 pm tomorrow night," Bretsch said. 
 
Ameren said that if 10,000 customers have no power for over four hours, they can file a claim for any food lost as a result.

With the outages came damage to several communities across central Illinois. 

Charleston

Charleston storm damage 6.17.26

Downed tree branches litter the street of a neighborhood in Charleston 

Downed tree limbs adorned one street in a Charleston neighborhood after strong storms moved through the area. 

The City of Charleston declared a state of emergency late Wednesday evening due to severe storm damage throughout much of the community. 

Petersburg

Hand of Fate Brewing Company in Petersburg posted on Facebook that it closed on Wednesday due to severe storm damage to its building.

A WAND reporter and photographer at the scene captured part of Hands of Fate's shattered sign blocking off the sidewalk in front of the business.

The Ameren facility in Petersburg also had its roof ripped off. 

Effingham

Portions of Effingham County suffered significant damage after a tornado ripped through the area. 

According to the Effingham Fire Department, a tornado moved through the area just after 8 p.m. Wednesday. 

EFD reported only minor injuries within the area its firefighters responded to. Additionally, no life-threatening injuries were reported.

Meridian Elementary damage

Crews assess damage at Meridian Elementary School in Blue Mound on June 18, 2026, after strong storms the night before ripped off part of the roof and exposed classrooms to the outdoor elements.

Blue Mound

Meridian Elementary School in Blue Mound suffered heavy damage, with parts of its roof hanging off the side of the building.

Pieces of the roof and siding from the walls littered the school grounds and the surrounding areas.

At least seven classrooms were exposed because of damage.

Decatur

Decatur experienced flooding in parts of the city after heavy rains drenched the community.

Eldorado and Van Dyke Streets suffered the brunt of the flooding in underpasses. 

Police had to block off some of the underpasses to keep residents from driving their vehicles into pools of standing water. 

Illiopolis

Downed tree limbs were scattered through the community of Illiopolis, located between Springfield and Decatur. 

One resident described "spikey" hail that fell from the sky. 

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