Mother Nature's Freedom & Liberty
While many towns and cities across Northern Illinois geared up to celebrate the nation's birthday, a particularly slow-moving but nasty grouping of convective storms made their way east across the Chicagoland area. The City of Aurora was on the ball, and called off their fireworks before the first signs of lightning. Other cities did the same. But some towns either did not, or the patrons thought they could wait it out. Further south and west, as this storm was building, two people were unfortunately struck by lightning in the tiny town of Sheridan. And later, one person was struck in Chicago, just as the fireworks were wrapping up.
I chose to wait it out, as long as conditions would allow, from atop a parking garage in downtown Aurora. It was a surreal experience, as the entire neighborhoods on both sides of the Fox River were lighting off fireworks, some as large as in the city's display. From atop the parking garage, you could see 360 degrees around with both fireworks and lightning going off all around. While I was ecstatic to experience such an event from such a vantage point, I was very disheartened to learn when I got home that people had been hurt not far from where I live. As of July 5th, they were all in critical condition.
Mother Nature's Freedom & Liberty
While many towns and cities across Northern Illinois geared up to celebrate the nation's birthday, a particularly slow-moving but nasty grouping of convective storms made their way east across the Chicagoland area. The City of Aurora was on the ball, and called off their fireworks before the first signs of lightning. Other cities did the same. But some towns either did not, or the patrons thought they could wait it out. Further south and west, as this storm was building, two people were unfortunately struck by lightning in the tiny town of Sheridan. And later, one person was struck in Chicago, just as the fireworks were wrapping up.
I chose to wait it out, as long as conditions would allow, from atop a parking garage in downtown Aurora. It was a surreal experience, as the entire neighborhoods on both sides of the Fox River were lighting off fireworks, some as large as in the city's display. From atop the parking garage, you could see 360 degrees around with both fireworks and lightning going off all around. While I was ecstatic to experience such an event from such a vantage point, I was very disheartened to learn when I got home that people had been hurt not far from where I live. As of July 5th, they were all in critical condition.