Illinois man dies, raising Midwestern storm death toll to 4

OTTAWA, Ill. – A northern Illinois man has died after being struck by a tree during a powerful Midwestern storm, raising the death toll for the regional storms to four.

Peoria County’s coroner says 31-year-old David A. Johnson of Ottawa died Wednesday of severe head trauma at a Peoria hospital.

Johnson was in a backyard with his spouse and father-in-law Tuesday when the storm uprooted a tree that landed on them. His 76-year-old father-in-law, Wayne Tuntland, was killed. His spouse was treated at a hospital.

Seventy-one-year-old Thomas McCord also died Tuesday when an apparent tornado struck a building in Crossville, in southern Illinois.

In Missouri, officials say 24-year-old Travis Koenig of Perryville was killed when a tornado blew his vehicle off Interstate 55. Forecasters say the tornado, which damaged more than 100 homes, had wind speeds between 139 mph and 165 mph.