Alert archive / Illinois / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1996

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 21, NWS Lincoln, IL

April 18, 1996Cass County, Morgan County, Scott County, Illinois

NWS Lincoln, IL issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Apr 18, 1996, 6:22 PM CDT for Cass County, Morgan County, Scott County, Illinois. It was in force for 23 min. 4 reports came from inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named, with what was reported inside it.

The facts

Issued
Apr 18, 1996, 6:22 PM CDT (23:22 UTC)
Expired
Apr 18, 1996, 6:45 PM CDT
In force
23 min
Issued by
NWS Lincoln, IL
Area
Whole counties

Counties Cass County, IL, Morgan County, IL, Scott County, IL

The radar

The Lincoln radar (KILX), 93 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:25 UTC, the scan nearest the moment this went out.

Open the radar archive at this moment

The archived warnings, watches and discussions in force at that minute are drawn over the scan, this one among them.

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
Apr 18, 6:30 PM CDTHail 0.75Bluffs, IL
Apr 18, 6:30 PM CDTHail 1.75Arenzville, IL
Apr 18, 6:35 PM CDTHail 1Jacksonville, IL
Apr 18, 6:50 PM CDTHail 1.75Virginia, IL

NCEI Storm Data entries that began inside the alert's area while it was in force. Before 2003 the local storm report archive is thin, so this is the record of what happened rather than what was phoned in.

The nearest sounding before it

Lincoln, IL (KILX), launched 12:00Z, 11.4 hours before the alert went out and 151 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.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Lincoln, IL at 12:00Z on 1996-04-18Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Lincoln, IL at 12:00Z on 1996-04-18The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 121 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km.
Mixed-layer CAPE
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
1393 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
26 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
121 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
205 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

000 
TTAA00 KSPI 182325
SVRSPI
ILC017-137-171-182345-
 
BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LINCOLN IL
622 PM CDT THU APR 18 1996
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LINCOLN HAS ISSUED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  645 PM CDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...
 
IN CENTRAL ILLINOIS
 
   ...CASS COUNTY...WESTERN MORGAN COUNTY
 
IN WEST CENTRAL ILLINOIS
 
   ...NORTHERN SCOTT COUNTY
 
AT 620 PM CDT...DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM NEAR
NAPLES IN SCOTT COUNTY...60 MILES WEST OF SPRINGFIELD. THIS STORM IS
MOVING EAST AT 35 MPH.
 
THE STORMS WILL MOVE THROUGH MEREDOSIA BY 625 PM...CONCORD AROUND 630
PM...AND VIRGINIA BY 640 PM.
 
THIS STORM PRODUCED GOLFBALL SIZE HAIL AS IT MOVED THROUGH SCHUYLER
COUNTY. LARGE HAIL IS STILL LIKELY WITH THIS STORM. MOVE TO A REINFORCED
SHELTER AND STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS!
$$
 
GEELHART
 
 
&

The office that day

Everything else NWS Lincoln, IL issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 18, 5:42 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILXSchuyler33 min
Apr 18, 6:12 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILXSchuyler33 min
Apr 18, 6:26 PM CDTTornado WarningILXFulton49 min
Apr 18, 6:43 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILXCass, Mason, Menard62 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Illinois, 1996Every severe thunderstorm warning in 1996

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; verification from NCEI's Storm Data; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.