Severe weather cut power to nearly 1 million customers in the Midwest as perilous thunderstorms and extreme wind gusts pummeled the region Tuesday.

Tornado warning sirens howled as the skies darkened. All flights were temporarily stopped at Chicago’s two major airports, and officials warned of delays as the backlog was cleared. According to the flight tracking website FlightAware, 45% of flights in and out of Chicago O’Hare International Airport were delayed on Tuesday, and 10% were canceled. 

In Ohio, power outages swept the state capital region, and at least one death was reported.

Photos from the Chicago area posted on social media showed flooded roads, trees tangled in power lines and homes with gashes in their roofs.

As of Tuesday evening, more than 991,000 customers were without power across Illinois, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky, according to utility tracker PowerOutage.us.

National Weather Service meteorologist Scott Baker said the Midwest was on the outer edge of what is known as a “ring of fire,” which brings waves of excessive moisture, instability and storms. A ring of fire occurs when a large zone of high atmospheric pressure forms and triggers heavy rain and thunderstorms along its edges.

The weather service bluntly warned earlier in the day: “These are dangerous storms!”

Meteorologists with CBS News Chicago reported that at least three suspected tornadoes tore through several suburbs in south Chicago and northwest Indiana.

In the south Chicago village of Flossmoor, there were several downed power lines and trees.

“Wind started blowing, and you can hear debris hitting all sides of the house at the same time. I couldn’t see more than 2 feet from outside the window. It got pretty bad. So I’m like, ‘Let’s get downstairs,'” Flossmoor resident Gilbert Casillas told CBS News Chicago.

Javid Jenkins, 54, of Homewood, a Chicago suburb, said he was driving around for gas to fire up a generator to preserve food in his refrigerator.

“No power. It was very scary. We were down in the basement,” Jenkins said. “We’re built for snow. We’re built for cold. We’re not built for this.”

There were numerous reports of wind gusts of 80 mph or more at personal weather stations.

“Total devastation. No roof,” said Kerry Hourigan, standing outside her home of 25 years in the Chicago suburb of Tinley Park. “Stupid thing, but my focus was I just bought a new barbecue grill, and I have no idea where that is. It’s disappeared.”

In the northwest Indiana city of Portage, a home explosion during the powerful storm killed at least one person, city officials told CBS News Chicago. Aerial images of the site showed a massive debris field around the remains of a house that was engulfed in flames. It was not immediately clear if the cause of the explosion was linked to the severe weather.

In Crown Point, Indiana, homeowners were cleaning up significant tree damage. Hailey Mogan told CBS News Chicago that she and her co-workers barricaded themselves in a bathroom waiting for the storm to pass.

“The next thing you know, like, not even 5 seconds later, just wind,” Mogan said. “Literally about to blow our door open. We were holding it shut and we had to padlock it. It’s crazy. I don’t even know if I’m going to get home because they’re saying everywhere around here is closed, can’t get through.”

The fifth day of the 10-day Lake County, Indiana, Fair was canceled, disappointing fans who were hoping to see a professional wrestling event involving people under 5 feet tall.

Nearby in LaPorte County, Indiana, there was a “tremendous amount of tree damage,” Commissioner Joe Haney said.

In Ohio, Gov. Mike DeWine said a resident of Roseville died during a health emergency when first responders, faced with flooded roads, couldn’t get there. He warned that flood dangers would persist.

“This is not something that will end tonight,” DeWine said of the severe weather.

Indeed, forecasters said multiple rounds of rain would cause flood hazards in the Ohio Valley through early Friday.

Officials in Columbus, Ohio, sent local government workers home early ahead of another round of storms. The library in Westerville, Ohio, closed after rain poured into the atrium.