Alert archive / Illinois / Tornado Warnings in 1997

Tornado Warning 16, NWS Lincoln, IL

May 18, 1997Fulton County, Peoria County, Illinois

NWS Lincoln, IL issued this tornado warning at May 18, 1997, 9:31 PM CDT for Fulton County, Peoria County, Illinois. It was in force for 49 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
May 18, 1997, 9:31 PM CDT (02:31 UTC)
Expired
May 18, 1997, 10:20 PM CDT
In force
49 min
Issued by
NWS Lincoln, IL
Area
Whole counties

Counties Fulton County, IL, Peoria County, IL

The radar

The Lincoln radar (KILX), 76 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 02:33 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.

The watch it was issued in

The SPC watch in force over the same counties when this warning went out.

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
May 18, 5:30 PM CDTTornado WatchSPC6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Davenport, (KDVN), launched 00:00Z, 2.5 hours before the alert went out and 118 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, Davenport, at 00:00Z on 1997-05-19Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 2339 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Davenport, at 00:00Z on 1997-05-19The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 145 square meters per square second.19395878Sfc1 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
2339 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-25 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1544 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
49 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
145 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
165 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
1.0
Supercell composite
9.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

894 
WFUS1 KSPI 190232
TORSPI

ILC057-143-190320-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LINCOLN IL
931 PM CDT SUN MAY 18 1997

* TORNADO WARNING FOR
  NORTHERN FULTON COUNTY - WEST CENTRAL ILLINOIS
  PEORIA COUNTY - CENTRAL ILLINOIS

* UNTIL 1020 PM CDT
 
* SOME TOWNS AFFECTED
  LONDON MILLS
  FARMINGTON
  ELMWOOD
  HANNAH CITY

* AT 9:30 PM CDT LINCOLN DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A TORNADO NEAR
  YATES CITY AND FAIVIEW IN FULTON COUNTY...MOVING EAST AT 35 MPH.

  SPOTTERS REPORTED A TORNADO NEAR YATES CITY.


TAKE COVER IMMEDIATELY IN A BASEMENT OR INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST
FLOOR. ABANDON MOBILE HOMES AND VEHICLES FOR SAFER SHELTER.

PERLOW/KETCHUM

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 18, 8:33 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILXKnox47 min
May 18, 9:17 PM CDTTornado WarningILXKnox48 min
May 18, 10:10 PM CDTTornado WarningILXTazewell50 min
May 18, 10:13 PM CDTTornado WarningILXPeoria32 min
May 18, 10:17 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILXKnox43 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Illinois, 1997Every tornado warning in 1997Tornadoes in 1997

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; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.