The path, from the NWS survey
The NWS survey logged an EF-1 tornado with estimated peak winds of 110 mph. It ran 11.5 miles and was up to 250 yards wide, from near Minooka across Shorewood and the Fox River and into Joliet (NWS storm survey). Inside the city, the survey lists:
- Near McDonough Street and Houbolt Road: several trees uprooted in a subdivision.
- Inwood Golf Course: over 100 trees damaged, some snapped, others uprooted. Some of the damaged trees were 70 years old.
- Route 52 and Larkin Avenue: significant tree, power line and utility pole damage, and roof damage to several buildings, including a church on Midland Avenue.
- The peak: NWS says the tornado was likely strongest as it crossed the golf course and the area east of Larkin Avenue, then weakened after crossing the Des Plaines River.
On the ground: Marycrest and Inwood
The Herald-News reported that trees fell on houses and at least two garages were blown down in the Marycrest subdivision. Fire Chief Jeff Carey said Marycrest, on the west side, took the most damage in Joliet. The paper also named Springwood and College Park along Houbolt Road as damaged (Herald-News, July 16, 2024). A resident on Benedict Avenue described limbs down but no damage to her house, while across the street a large limb dented a roof (same article).
At Inwood, the golf course general manager told WGN the course lost roughly 100 to 120 trees, some over 70 years old (WGN). The Park District reopened the front nine that Thursday; the back nine was hit worst (Herald-News, July 17, 2024). Its director said new trees would likely have to be planted (same Herald-News article from July 16).
What a west side yard can take from this
These are our observations from the records above, not an engineering study:
- Mature trees did the damage. The loss on record is large, old trees: 70-year-old trees at Inwood, trees on houses and garages in Marycrest.
- It hit a few areas hard. The Herald-News said the worst damage seemed to come in just a few areas of the city. A street a mile away may have looked fine. That is not proof your tree is sound.
- Wires came down with the trees, and the survey lists pole and line damage at Larkin and Route 52.
Whose tree is it, and who do you call
- Parkway tree down or leaning? That is the City’s tree. Call Forestry at 815-724-3650 (Joliet Forestry).
- Limbs over the wire to your house? See ComEd’s free service drop.
- Big tree over the roof or garage? Have it looked at in the fall or winter, not the week after a storm. See tree removal in Joliet and storm damage in Joliet.
For the bigger picture, read our Will County storm history.
Sources
Checked Nov. 9, 2026. If a City rule has changed since, the City’s page wins.