2004 Utica Tornado Memorial - Utica, IL
Posted by: 
cldisme
N 41° 20.495 W 089° 00.586
16T E 331846 N 4578625
This memorial is dedicated on the site where 8 people died taking shelter from a quick-spawning F3 tornado in this tiny town in Central Illinois.
Waymark Code: WM1V34
Location: Illinois, United States
Date Posted: 07/10/2007
Views: 81
On April 20, 2004, an F3 tornado (158–206 mph winds) whipped through Utica, IL. Warnings were sounded and a handful of residents took shelter in the Milestone Inn, a century old brick tavern.
Although the building was built of brick, its age was its undoing.
Modern construction techniques call for steel re-enforcement, and whereas this building did not, it collapsed under the fury of the winds. The eight residents, thinking they were doing the right thing, were killed.
The community found it hard to lose eight of their friends and family without providing a monument to their lives. So the former site of the Milestone Inn has been cleared to build this monument.
Yes, you will find nine names on the plaque. The ninth is a baby born too premature a few days after the tornado. Doctors attributed the death to stress of the mother due to the events of the tornado.
Disaster Date: 04/20/2004
Memorial Sponsors: City of North Utica
Disaster Type: Natural
Relevant Website: [Web Link]
Date of dedication: Not listed
Parking Coordinates: Not Listed
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