CHICAGO (WLS) — As of Sunday, the severe storms and flooding that swept through Indiana have resulted in at least seven fatalities. In the aftermath, power outages continue to challenge residents in northwest Indiana.

The Chicago area is in recovery mode as many communities, including Lansing, Illinois, work to rebuild from the devastation.

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Three of those storm-related deaths occurred in the Chicago area’s Lake, Porter, and LaPorte counties, with other fatalities reported across different parts of Indiana.

The state experienced record-setting rainfall, causing many rivers to overflow and wreak havoc on the affected regions.

As of Sunday afternoon, nearly 150,000 residents in northwest Indiana were still dealing with power outages, complicating recovery efforts.

Indiana Governor Mike Braun declared a statewide disaster emergency Friday. On Saturday, President Donald Trump approved his request for a Presidential Emergency Declaration.

Saturday evening, FEMA announced “federal disaster assistance is available to the state of Indiana to supplement state, tribal and local response efforts due to the emergency conditions resulting from severe storms, straight-line winds, tornadoes and flooding beginning on August 11, 2026, and continuing.”

South suburban lawmakers in Illinois say their communities need FEMA funds too.

New video from Lansing on Sunday gave an idea of how difficult the recovery process will be. The town was hit by one of six tornadoes that swept through the Chicago area last week.

On Sunday, Lansing’s mayor joined other local leaders to appeal for help from the federal government.

Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, who just visited Lansing Friday, is expected to issue a state disaster declaration soon.

A homeowner in Crown Point, Indiana, is demanding answers from NIPSCO after claiming a dangerous power line was left hanging in standing water for days since last week’s severe storms.

Dinno Jahovic says the hazard on Wells Street was first reported to NIPSCO on Tuesday. He says he made additional calls Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, but that no one showed up to fix it.

Overnight Saturday to Sunday, power was restored to the neighborhood, and the same line started sparking and caught fire along the driveway. Jahovic says a fire also broke out in a neighbor’s yard.

No one was hurt in the incident, but Jahovic wants an investigation into why his repeated calls for help were not addressed before power was restored.

NIPSCO said Sunday that they were notified of the fire, and sent workers to the site to help first responders.

Meanwhile, NIPSCO had to temporarily pause some of its storm restoration work in northwest Indiana after a crew’s vehicle was hit by gunfire on Friday night, officials said.

Gary Mayor Eddie Melton confirmed that gunfire hit a vehicle belonging to a NIPSCO utility crew who were working to restore power to residents. Melton said no one was injured, and police are investigating.

The company said it temporarily paused storm restoration activities involving crews in Gary after the “serious incident.” Work in the area resumed Saturday evening.

“Let me be clear: this type of violence is absolutely unacceptable and will not be tolerated in the City of Gary,” said Melton. “These crews are here for one reason-to help our residents and restore electricity to families who have already endured days without power.”

NIPSCO issued a statement, saying, “NIPSCO is aware of a serious incident overnight in Gary involving our crews supporting our ongoing storm restoration efforts. We are working closely with law enforcement and gathering additional information. The safety of our employees, contractors and the communities we serve remains our highest priority. We are grateful that no injuries have been reported. In response to this incident, storm restoration activities involving crews have been temporarily paused in the city of Gary while we work with law enforcement and evaluate appropriate security measures to ensure the safety of our responders. We thank our employees, contractors, mutual assistance crews and law enforcement partners for their continued dedication and support during this historic restoration effort. Restoration work continues across northern Indiana, and we will provide additional information as it becomes available. We appreciate the patience and understanding of Gary residents as we take steps to ensure restoration efforts can continue safely.”

Melton said the city is coordinating with NIPSCO, the Gary Police Department, the Indiana State Police, and state officials to ensure crews have the protection necessary to safely resume their restoration work. Indiana State Police is deploying additional troopers to help local departments.

Some Gary residents who have been without electricity since Tuesday say they are frustrated after learning that power restoration efforts were temporarily paused due to the incident.

This week’s storms led to the cancellation of next weekend’s Gary Air Show. The organizers say the need for first responders to assist in the cleanup is more important than the show happening this year. They hope to be back next summer.

In Chicago, weather conditions delayed the city’s Air and Water Show on Saturday and Sunday.

The Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events said producers worked with the Federal Aviation Administration to assess flight conditions and ensure the safety of performing acts, attendees and event staff.

FULL FORECAST | Chicago weather: Scattered storms, showers Sunday

What began as a neighborhood squabble swiftly escalated into a full-blown conflict.

In a wild episode from Florida, a man’s outrage over uncollected dog droppings prompted a dramatic confrontation with his neighbor. Armed with the alleged offending waste, the man stormed into his neighbor’s home and hurled it at him, sparking a messy altercation that culminated in a fistfight and a heated exchange involving a child’s metal scooter, authorities reported.

The incident, a result of escalating tension, led to the arrest of 35-year-old Trey Decloedt by Lake County sheriff’s deputies on August 8. The arrest followed a chaotic scene at a Leesburg residence one day prior, as documented in the arrest affidavit.

The couple living next door revealed to police that the incident was the latest flashpoint in an ongoing dispute with Decloedt regarding dog feces littering their properties, a story echoed by WKMG-TV.

According to the husband, an enraged Decloedt forcefully entered his home without consent, clutching the feces, which he then threw, physically hitting him with the smelly substance.

The homeowner then pushed Decloedt back outside, where the two men got into a fight and Decloedt allegedly punched him in the face, according to the affidavit account.

The confrontation escalated further when Decloedt allegedly grabbed a child’s metal scooter, hoisted it over his head in a “menacing posture” and threatened the neighbor, according to reports.

Responding deputies observed a red mark on the neighbor’s forehead as well as animal feces outside the home, according to the affidavit.

Decloedt told deputies he had already complained to the neighbor’s wife about the mess and that she promised to clean it up — but four hours later, it was still there, according to bodycam footage obtained by WKMG-TV.

He claimed the neighbor later messaged him to come over and discuss the poop problem, then “shoved him in the doorway” before the two men fought in the driveway.

When deputies asked to enter Decloedt’s home to photograph injuries he said he suffered in the scuffle, he allegedly refused — and then declined orders to come outside, according to Law&Crime.

Deputies eventually placed him in handcuffs and brought him in for questioning, where, after being read his rights, he agreed to talk and stuck to his story.

Decloedt also told deputies that the two neighbors had previously had an understanding that allowed them to enter each other’s homes without knocking.

The neighbor, however, provided deputies with a recording that reportedly showed he had previously told Decloedt he was no longer welcome on the property or inside the house because of the feces dispute.

Decloedt was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, aggravated battery, simple battery and burglary.

Decloedt posted $16,000 bond on Aug. 9 and was released, according to Law&Crime, which reported that his next court date is Aug. 31.

Tragedy has struck a steel plant in Indiana, claiming the life of a military veteran and father of six, leaving a fiancée and his young children grieving.

Jonathan Stepp, 28, lost his life on Thursday in a tragic accident at the Cleveland Cliffs Burns Harbor Plant, located near Chicago in the northwestern corner of Indiana.

Stepp’s identity was confirmed by those close to him on social media, as well as the IUOE Local 150 union, of which he was a dedicated member.

At the time of the fatal incident, the dedicated father was operating a pot hauler, a substantial vehicle designed for the transporting and dumping of containers filled with molten slag.

While authorities have refrained from disclosing further details about the incident, questions remain over what led to this devastating accident.

Stepp was employed by a company called Phoenix Services, which was contracted by Cleveland Cliffs to provide industrial services at the Burns Harbor plant. Phoenix Services is owned by SunCoke Energy Inc.

Sharon Doyle, a spokesperson for SunCoke Energy, shared a statement with the Daily Mail that said: ‘Thursday night, we suffered the tragic loss of one of our employees at our Burns Harbor, Indiana operations. 

‘Our hearts are with his family, and we are supporting them and our team during this difficult time.  

‘The safety of our employees is our highest priority. We have been in contact with Indiana OSHA and are fully cooperating with the agency, local authorities, and emergency responders to investigate the incident.’ 

The spokesperson did not address the Daily Mail’s questions about what may have caused the accident.

A spokesperson for Cleveland Cliffs, the company that operates the plant where Stepp died, likewise did not share more details about the accident and merely said: ‘A formal investigation into the incident is underway.’ 

According to a statement released by IUOE Local 150, which called Stepp a ‘brother’ and ‘one of our own,’ he was a second-generation member of the union and an operating engineer.

On his Facebook page, Stepp described himself as ‘Proud to be Union, Proud to be a Veteran, but most importantly, Proud to be a Father.’  

Stepp’s fiancée, Sierra Knoll, said on Facebook that she is a stay-at-home mom who has been left to care for the couple’s six children without any income at the moment.

A GoFundMe organized on Knoll’s behalf by a friend said the mother ‘is going through an unimaginably painful time.

‘In the midst of that heartbreaking grief, she is also caring for her children and doing everything she can to keep life moving forward for her family.’

‘As if that loss were not enough, Sierra is also facing needed home repairs after a recent storm caused damage to her house. Right now, she is carrying emotional pain, financial stress, and the day-to-day needs of her household all at once,’ the fundraiser added.

In a swift response to an alleged street takeover, police took decisive action by arresting fifteen individuals and seizing seven vehicles on a Long Island road early Saturday morning. This operation targeted a chaotic scene featuring reckless driving, burnouts, and donuts, authorities confirmed.

Prior to the Friday night event on August 14, Suffolk County Police Department’s Street Takeover Task Force intercepted plans for the gathering. They had leveraged intelligence operations and monitored social media channels closely to anticipate the illegal activity.

Detectives discovered the group’s intentions to conduct a street takeover in Suffolk County, which spans approximately 1,000 square miles on the eastern part of Long Island.

Throughout the night, the authorities tracked the movements of the group as they migrated between various sites, successfully keeping tabs on their location changes.

Officers first broke up attempted gatherings near Commack Road and Sunrise Highway in Islip before disrupting another near Route 112 and Main Street in Patchogue.

Police finally intercepted the crowd around 12:50 a.m. Saturday near Woodside Avenue and Sawgrass Drive in Medford, where authorities said numerous vehicles had effectively shut down the roadway.

“Numerous vehicles effectively closed down the roadway on Sawgrass Drive by driving recklessly, performing stunts in the roadway, and doing donuts and burnouts,” police said.

Members of the Street Takeover Task Force responded to the scene, arresting 15 people, impounding seven vehicles and handing out multiple traffic tickets, according to the department.

Those arrested came from communities across Long Island and New York City, police said.

Fourteen of the 15 suspects were charged with both participating in an unlawful speed contest and spectating an unlawful speed contest. 

The crackdown comes just weeks after another massive street takeover rocked Suffolk County.

In that incident, police said at least 200 ATVs, dirt bikes and motorcycles flooded roads in Hauppauge and Brentwood, prompting another major law-enforcement response.

Three people were arrested, and 10 vehicles were impounded during that operation, according to Suffolk County Police.

The Suffolk County Police Department could not immediately be reached by News Media for comment.

Sid Wilson has confirmed his departure from Slipknot by altering his Instagram bio, ending any speculation about his connection to the band.

Earlier this month, in a surprising turn of events, Wilson was dismissed from the iconic heavy metal group. Slipknot officially announced the split on Friday through a statement on the Instagram page for their music festival, Knotfest.

In response, the 49-year-old DJ and keyboardist made a definitive statement by updating his Instagram bio from “@slipknot gang since 1997” to simply “@slipknot 1997-2026.”

Wilson had been a part of Slipknot since before the release of their eponymous debut album in 1999 and had contributed to the band for nearly three decades before being let go.

According to TMZ, Wilson’s departure was not abrupt but rather a culmination of mounting issues, with his bandmates reportedly having reached the end of their patience regarding his conduct towards them.

Slipknot’s statement Friday read, “Effective immediately, Slipknot will no longer be associated with Sid Wilson.”

They band added, “We wish him the best in his future endeavors.”

But the messaging from Slipknot about Wilson’s departure has been messy. The band initially deleted their Instagram post announcing he was no longer with Slipknot, and guitarist Jim Root previously shared a cryptic message after TMZ broke the news of Wilson’s firing.

“Don’t believe everything you read,” Root wrote via his Instagram Stories. “Think. Take a breath. Sit with it for awhile (sic). Maybe. Just maybe even wait until there’s more information.”

Wilson hasn’t made a statement about no longer being with the band aside from his sneaky profile update.

It’s been a rough time for the musician as the firing came just months after news broke that he and his now ex-fiancée, Kelly Osbourne, called off their engagement. The couple dated for four years and share a 3-year-old son, Sidney.

Osbourne, 41, took a vicious public swipe at her ex days after he was fired in an Instagram Story she later deleted.

“Wake the f–k up and take some responsibility I will not take your s–t anymore! I’m done,” she heatedly wrote.

“I want to be happy and I have a beautiful son to raise. Leave me alone. Let me heal. I can’t protect you from yourself anymore,” she continued.

In another post, she added, “Also while I’m at it can I have my dogs back and all my possessions. Oh yeah and maybe some child support?”

In a heart-stopping moment amidst devastating Indiana floods, a mother discovered her two-year-old daughter drowning in their basement. Fortunately, the child survived, although the natural disaster has tragically claimed the lives of seven others.

Caught in days-long torrents, young Alayna found herself ensnared when rising waters engulfed her Rush County home, according to her family. The dreadful ordeal unfolded as the state battled severe flooding.

At the center of this harrowing scene was Alayna’s mother, Becky, who was home with her daughter and 13-year-old son, Liem. The crisis struck while Alayna’s father was away, as revealed in a heartfelt GoFundMe campaign initiated by the toddler’s aunt.

In swift action, when Alayna was found drowning, Liem dialed 911 as Becky commenced CPR on her daughter, fighting against time and tide.

With emergency vehicles blocked by the high floodwaters, relief came through an unexpected hero. A local farmer, using his tractor, managed to transport emergency responders to Alayna, according to her aunt, Poshia.

She was airlifted to Peyton Manning Children’s Hospital and remains in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU).

Alayna was initially put on a ventilator before having her ‘EEG monitor removed after showing no signs of seizure activity’ on Saturday. 

She contracted a bacterial infection in her lungs from the incident, but on Sunday, her family shared that Alayna is finally breathing on her own. 

‘After successfully completing her breathing trials—including one where she was able to breathe completely on her own for 31 minutes—Alayna passed her second breathing trial today,’ her aunt shared in an update. 

Alayna has since been taken off a ventilator and her oxygen levels continue to rise. She has also been crying, but it something that her family is grateful to hear. 

‘Hearing her cry after everything she has been through is a sound we never imagined we would be so grateful to hear,’ her aunt said. 

Although she has greatly improved, the toddler is not entirely out of the woods yet as she is running a small fever that is likely linked to the infection she contracted. 

‘There is still a long road ahead for our sweet girl, and we know we aren’t out of the woods yet. But today, we are celebrating a HUGE victory,’ the page read. 

As of Sunday afternoon, more than $12,000 had been raised to help her family with mounting medical bills and treatments for Alayna. 

At least seven people lost their lives in the floods, including Matthew Morey, 18, Stephanie Jo Sallee, 58, and James Briar, a 31-year-old bicyclist, officials confirmed. 

A four-year-old boy died after a tree fell on him and woman was struck and killed by fallen debris from a roof, reports stated. Two other females also died. Their identities are unknown at this time.

Matthew Morey’s body was recovered on Saturday from the Mississinewa River after he was reported missing, the Delaware County Sheriff’s Office said.

Search efforts for the 18-year-old began after he and a group of people jumped into the water near Muncie on Wednesday, officials said.

It is unclear why they jumped into the water. Sheriff’s deputies helped pull three people to safety, but they couldn’t locate Morey.

Because of dangerous conditions, the search for Morey was suspended on Thursday amid the ‘once in a lifetime’ sweeping floods.

Stephanie Jo Sallee and her dog Faith also died in the flood after she was driving a vehicle ‘through moving water’ on the road, Jeff Stanley, the chief deputy of the Delaware County Sheriff’s Department, said.

Jo Sallee, 58, was found in a cornfield after her car got swept away. Her pug, Faith, was found deceased inside the vehicle on Saturday afternoon.

Police believe that she tried to exit her vehicle after it was swept into the field before being ‘overcome by the moving water,’ Stanley said.

Her family has remembered her as someone with a big heart who ‘never judged people.’

‘She persevered many trials in her life and remained a compassionate and loving person,’ they told WRTV.

‘Her family meant the world to her. She adored her nephews and grandkids and great grandkids! I will miss her deeply.’

Briar also died after he rode his bike around flooded barricades and onto a collapsed road that fell apart due to heavy rainfall, the New Castle Mayor’s Office confirmed. 

It seems Ian Machado Garry’s amiability might be working against him.

Critics were quick to point this out after UFC 330, where Islam Makhachev reigned supreme, defending his welterweight title by unanimous decision. Garry, appearing in his first championship bout, seemed to lack the aggression anticipated at such a pivotal moment.

UFC President Dana White was among those who felt Garry fell short, expressing his thoughts candidly during the post-event media briefing.

“Here’s what I honestly believe; tonight was primed for an upset,” White remarked at the UFC 330 post-fight interview. “With so much at stake, including all of Islam’s records and his aim to surpass Anderson Silva, it seemed possible. There’s a reason for weight classes. Ian Garry is tall, strong, and has excellent takedown defense. Just look at how he fended off Islam tonight; it was remarkable.”

White further elaborated, “Ian possesses talent. Had he embraced a touch of killer instinct in that final round—he was landing body shots effectively. Islam’s right side took a beating, his face showed it. At such a crucial point, you don’t exchange pleasantries. That complacency makes me insane given what was on the line.”

Makhachev himself lent voice to this following the victory, in which he led 49-46 on two scorecards and 48-47 on the third.

“Honestly, I don’t understand,” Makhachev said about Garry. “This is a fight. This is not something we have to hug each other every round. We’re going to war. We’re going to break the face, to break the eye. I respect all my opponents. But [maybe he’s young]. He respects too much.”

Makhachev added that he still thinks highly of Garry, but ultimately echoed White’s sentiment.

“I respect him. He’s a good guy. Very kind. But this is a war,” the champion said. “Look at my face. I just come to beat everything. It’s not something you have to play. This is a fight. This is not a game.”

White later said in his presser that he wishes he could replay at least the final round of the bout.

“There’s also a lot of mental gamesmanship, whatever you want to call it, in this game,” said White. “You come out in that fifth round with a flying knee or something crazy, and you try to finish the fight. I think that this is one of those fights that Ian will go back and watch and say, ‘F–k, I wish I could do that over again.’”

With the win, Makhachev, 34, broke Silva’s record for the longest-winning streak in UFC history with 17.

The win improved Makhachev’s record to 29-1, with his only loss coming in his second UFC appearance back in October of 2015, where he was knocked out by MMA journeyman Adriano Martins.

Garry, 28, dropped to 17-2, with losses in two of his last four bouts.