(WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- Residents of Hoffman Estates, Mount Prospect and Schaumburg likely heard tornado sirens just after 1 p.m. on Thursday, but officials say it was a false alarm.
Officials in Mount Prospect say the sirens went off as a result of testing by the Northwest Central Dispatch System. In a tweet, the Village of Schaumburg said it confirmed with system administrators that the tornado sirens mistakenly went off Thursday.
The National Weather Service also took to social media to say the main thunderstorm threats at this time are lightning strikes and very heavy downpours.
These sirens did not go off during last weekend’s severe weather outbreak.
According to The Daily Herald, authorities are looking into why the system that serves 11 communities in the northwestern suburbs didn't go off last Sunday.