DECATUR, Ill. (WAND) - Over 35,000 customers across Illinois are without power after destructive storms Wednesday.

As of 2 a.m. Thursday, PowerOutage.com reported the following counties with estimated and approximate outages:

  • Macon County - 11,200
  • Moultrie County - 1,400
  • Sangamon County - 1,600
  • Coles County - 9,900
  • Christian County - 2,100
  • Effingham County - 1,400

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

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.

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, including parts of a tarp, littered the school grounds and the surrounding areas.

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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