Late last Friday, residents of Delavan experienced the full force of Mother Nature as a severe storm rolled through, unleashing high winds and heavy rain.

At 10:17 p.m., the National Weather Service in Lincoln issued a tornado warning, urging residents to seek shelter and stay indoors. Moments later, the emergency sirens for Delavan sounded.

The storm began with a radar indicated tornado warning for neighboring Mason County, and within the hour, it brought its fury to Delavan. Wind gusts exceeding 50 mph roared through town, uprooting a tree at 109 N. Pine and damaging a tree at 507 E. 3rd, toppling trash cans and the portable toilet by the Delavan Park District Sports Center at the corner of 1st and Locust.

The fast-moving storm left Delavan quickly, without any major damage or power outages.

For some, the prospect of this storm was a chilling reminder of the tornado that struck the southern part of town along 11th Street on July 16, 2015, when the siren initially sounded but stopped operating immediately after power was lost.  Many people were questioning whether, this time, the sirens would sound and alert residents.

They did.