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UPDATED 5:48 pm 6/18/25
Jacksonville, IL (CAPITOL CITY NOW) – A youth sports complex in Morgan County was badly damaged due to strong storms or potentially a tornado on Wednesday afternoon.
Social media photos and videos posted from eyewitnesses indicated the Future Champions Sports Complex on Keely Street suffered extensive damage to buildings around the park. Debris was scattered across a number of ball fields and several items tore down protective nets, according to our news partners at WAND-TV.
Storage and maintenance buildings across the street from the complex were also badly damaged, according to WAND.
According to a Facebook post from the complex, staff there is safe and no one was hurt. The restaurant on site is closed Wednesday night, and games scheduled for this weekend will have to be moved to other locations — something currently being worked out.
The damage happened during one of several tornado warnings Wednesday afternoon in Central Illinois — several of which were also issued for parts of Sangamon County.
The National Weather Service is expected to survey the damage, to determine if it was indeed a tornado or straight-line wind damage that caused the destruction. A funnel cloud had been reported in the area prior to 12pm.
“The west side of Jacksonville has sustained the heaviest damage and is considered the most impacted area,” said Phil McCarty, Director, Jacksonville/Morgan County Office of Emergency Management, in a news release. “We advise residents to avoid this part of the city while emergency teams assess and begin the clean-up process.”
McCarty’s news release described it as a “significant storm event.”
Power outages have been reported throughout the region by Ameren, CWLP, and other utilities. The outage affecting Jacksonville is also impacting Jacksonville Memorial Hospital, which says on social media while they have a backup general powering equipment, that does not include the air conditioning. Some services are being suspended, while the Emergency Room remains open.
According to storm reports relayed to the National Weather Service, despite the tornado warnings, the only other damage was a grain bin toppled over in Pleasant Plains.
It’s not clear if anyone has been injured from Wednesday’s storms.
