Alert archive / Illinois / Tornado Warnings in 1989
Tornado Warning 1, NWS Lincoln, IL
NWS Lincoln, IL issued this tornado warning at Mar 17, 1989, 6:39 PM CST for DeWitt County, Macon County, Piatt County, Illinois. It was in force for 36 min.
The area
The counties it named.
The facts
- Issued
- Mar 17, 1989, 6:39 PM CST (00:39 UTC)
- Expired
- Mar 17, 1989, 7:15 PM CST
- In force
- 36 min
- Issued by
- NWS Lincoln, IL
- Area
- Whole counties
Counties DeWitt County, IL, Macon County, IL, Piatt County, IL
The radar
The WSR-88D network and its archive begin in 1991, so there is no radar volume for this alert.
The nearest sounding before it
Peoria Regional, IL (KPIA), launched 00:00Z, 0.7 hours before the alert went out and 98 km from the middle of its area. This is the routine balloon launch nearest before it, the air the forecaster had in hand, not a measurement taken for the alert.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 0 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- No buoyant parcel
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 616 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 77 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 211 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 339 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.4
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000
TTAA00 KSPI 180039 RRA
TORSPI
ILC039-115-147-180115-
BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED/EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SPRINGFIELD IL
639 PM CST FRI MAR 17 1989
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WARNING
EFFECTIVE UNTIL 715 PM CST FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING
COUNTIES
IN THE CENTRAL PART OF ILLINOIS
DE-WITT...MACON...PIATT
AT 634 PM CST MACON SHEIRFF OFFICE AND MACON ESDA REPORTED
FUNNEL CLOUD NEAR OREANA AND LATHEM ILLINOIS IN MACON COUNTY.
THESE FUNNEL CLOUDS WERE MOVING NORTHEAST.
FUNNEL CLOUDS CAN AND OCCASIONALLY DO PRODUCE A TORNADO WITH LITTLE
OR NO ADVANCE WARNING...SO BE ON THE LOOKOUT AND BE PREPARED TO MOVE
TO A PLACE OF SAFETY.
IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF A TORNADO...GO TO A BASEMENT SHELTER
IF AVAILABLE...OTHERWISE TO A CENTRAL INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST
FLOOR. ABANDON CARS AND MOBILE HOMES FOR A REINFORCED BUILDING.
THIS IS A DANGEROUS STORM. TAKE COVER IMMEDIATELY.
ATTN ISP DIST...6 AND 10
HILLIARDWhat forecasters said that day
The local office's own words before this tornado warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
In the hours before
Special weather statement, Mar 17, 1:01 PM CST, 5 hours 38 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PEORIA IL 105 PM CST FRI MAR 17 1988 ...THUNDERSTORMS WITH SMALL HAIL MOVING THROUGH NORTHERN MARSHALL AND PUTNAM COUNTIES... AT 100 PM CST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR INDICATED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS OVER NORTH CENTRAL ILLINOIS. THE STRONGEST STORM WAS LOCATED NEAR HENRY...30 MILES NORTHEAST OF PEORIA. THE SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING NORTHEAST AT 40 MILES AN HOUR. THE THUZNDERSTORMS HAVE PRODUCED PEA AND MARBLE SIZE HAIL AS THEY MOVED THROUGH KNOX AND STARK COUNTIES EARLIER THIS AFTERNOON. HEAVY RAIN AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING CAN ALSO BE EXPECTED WITH THESE STORMS. J LAST
Special weather statement, Mar 17, 1:14 PM CST, 5 hours 25 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PEORIA IL 115 PM CST FRI MAR 17 1988 ...TEN DEGREE TEMPERATURE DROP IN TEN MINUTES AT THE GREATER PEORIA AIRPORT... A STATIONARY FRONT...DIVIDING THE STATE OF ILLINOIS IN HALF...HAS PRODUCED STRONG THUNDERSTORMS AND LARGE FLUCTUATIONS IN TEMPERATURE ACROSS CENTRAL ILLINOIS. BETWEEN 1255 PM AND 105 PM...THE TEMPERATURE AT THE GREATER PEORIA AIRPORT DROPPED TEN DEGREES...FROM 53 DEGREES TO 43 DEGREES...AS WINDS SWITCHED FROM THE SOUTH TO THE NORTH. THE PROXIMITY OF THE FRONT WILL CONTINUE TO PLAY HAVOC ON TEMPERATURE FORECASTS THIS AFTERNOON...WITH TEMPERATURES IN THE UPPER 30S IN BUREAU AND PUTNAM COUNTIES...AND NEAR 60 DEGREES IN TAZEWhELL AND MASON COUNTIES. J LAST
Special weather statement, Mar 17, 4:33 PM CST, 2 hours 6 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PEORIA IL 435 PM CST FRI MAR 17 1988 ...TORNADO WATCH FOR MASON...MCLEAN...AND TAZEWELL COUNTIES UNTIL 10 PM THIS EVENING... AT 430 PM...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR INDICATED A LINE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS FROM CHICAGO SOUTHWEST TO SAINT LOUIS. THE STRONGEST STORMS WERE LOCATED IN THE SAINT LOUIS AREA...HOWEVER A THUNDERSTORM NEAR MORTON ILLINOIS...15 MILES SOUTH OF PEORIA...WAS PRODUCING HEAVY RAIN AND SMALL HAIL. THE RAIN WAS MOVING EAST AT 30 MILES AN HOUR. A TORNADO WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR TORNADOES AND SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH AREA. STAY TUNED TO TELEVISION...RADIO...OR NOAA WEATHE.R RADIO FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS. J LAST
Special weather statement, Mar 17, 4:55 PM CST, 1 hour 44 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SPRINGFIELD IL 4 50 PM CST FRI MAR 17 1989 ...TORNADO WATCH IN EFFECT FOR A LARGE PART OF CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN ILLINOIS UNTIL 10 00 PM CST... AT 4 45 PM...SPRINGFIELD WEATHER RADAR INDICATED A 30 MILE WIDE BAND OF RAINSHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS OVER NORTHERN AND CENTRAL ILLINOIS ...FROM JOLIET...TO PEORIA...TO BEARDSTOWN...45 MILES WEST OF SPRINGFIELD...TO JUST WEST OF ST. LOUIS. THE STRONGEST STORMS...LIKELY PRODUCING VERY HEAVY RAIN...HAIL...AND DAMAGING WIND WERE LOCATED ALONG THE ILLINOIS RIVER 60 MILES SOUTHWEST OF SPRINGFIELD NEAR PEARL ILLINOIS...AND JUST NORTHWEST OF ST. LOUIS. MOVEMENT WAS NORTHEAST AT NEAR 50 MILES AN HOUR...BRINGING THESE STORMS INTO MACOUPIN COUNTY BETWEEN 5 15 AND 5 45...AND INTO SOUTHERN SANGAMON AND NORTHERN MONTGOMERY COUNTY BY 6 PM. PERSONS IN THE PATH OF THESE STORMS SHOULD BE PREPARED TO TAKE PROTECTIVE ACTIONS SHOULD SEVERE WEATHER DEVELOP LICSTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND WARNINGS. WAGNER
Special weather statement, Mar 17, 5:32 PM CST, 1 hour 7 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PEORIA IL 530 PM CST FRI MAR 17 1988 ...TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR MASON...MCLEAN...AND TAZEWELL COUNTIES UNTIL 10 PM THIS EVENING... AT 525 PM...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR INDICATED A LINE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS FROM CHICAGO SOUTHWEST TO SAINT LOUIS. SEVERE STORMS WERE LOCATED IN THE SAINT LOUIS AREA AND 25 MILES SOUTHWEST OF SPRINGFIELD ILLINOIS. CLOSER TO PEORIA...A HEAVY THUNDERSTORM WAS LOCATED AT SAN JOSE...30 MILES SOUTH OF PEORIA. THE SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING NORTHEAST AT 40 MILES AN HOUR. A TORNADO WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR TORNADOES AND SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE `WATCH AREA. STAY TUNED TO TELEVISION...RADIO...OR NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS. J LAST
The office that day
Everything else NWS Lincoln, IL issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 17, 6:08 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ILX | McLean | 52 min |
| Mar 17, 6:27 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ILX | Christian, Macon, Shelby | 63 min |
Nearby
Tornado Warnings in Illinois, 1989Every tornado warning in 1989Tornadoes in 1989
Sources
The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.