High winds and suspected tornadoes pound Chicago area

Severe wind and possible tornadoes have damaged buildings in the Chicago area as a cold front pounds the US Midwest.

The National Weather Service (NWS) said it received word of at least 10 sightings, including "likely" tornadoes throughout the region on Tuesday night.

In Mundelein, 36 miles (58km) north-west of Chicago, wind tore part of the roof off an apartment building.

The local fire department said 59 residents were displaced and one was taken to hospital with minor injuries.

The cold front blew across a wide swathe of northern Illinois and Indiana, knocking down trees and light poles.

Wind gusts in excess of 60mph (97km/h) were reported.

Thousands lost power and traffic was temporarily halted at the city's airports, but services mostly returned to normal by early Wednesday.

Experts say an El Niño weather pattern and climate change are two of the factors behind the extreme weather.

Cities across the US and Canada reached record February temperatures this week, with some experiencing summer-like heat.

Earlier on Tuesday, the temperature in Chicago reached 74F (23.3C) - nearly eclipsing a February record - before the storm rolled through, bringing with it hail and below-freezing temperatures.

The NWS described Chicago's weather pattern as seeing summer, spring, autumn and winter all crammed into 24 hours.

It described the swing as "absolutely brutal".

The Chicago Department of the Environment says the drastic fluctuations in temperature are an example of the unseasonable and unpredictable weather that climate change will continue to bring.

As numerous incoming and departing flights at Chicago's O'Hare airport were delayed on Tuesday, local media shared footage of hundreds of passengers packing into the airport for shelter.

Heavy snowfall, severe thunderstorms and golf ball-size hail have been reported in about a dozen states in the Midwest. People have been advised to stay off the roads.

Weather officials also say blizzard conditions are impacting Colorado, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, Minnesota, Oregon, Utah, South Dakota, Washington and Wyoming, causing travel chaos.

As the weather warning is moving east, more than 11 million people across Ohio and Kentucky remain under a tornado watch on Wednesday.