Alert archive / Illinois / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1998

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 57, NWS Lincoln, IL

May 19, 19984 counties in Illinois

NWS Lincoln, IL issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 19, 1998, 6:26 PM CDT for 4 counties in Illinois. It was in force for 49 min. 2 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: May 19, 1998, 6:26 PM CDT (23:26 UTC)
Expired: May 19, 1998, 7:15 PM CDT
In force: 49 min
Issued by: NWS Lincoln, IL
Area: Whole counties

Counties Fulton County, IL, Peoria County, IL, Tazewell County, IL, Woodford County, IL

The radar

The Lincoln radar (KILX), 61 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:30 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

Time	Report	Where	Remark
May 19, 6:40 PM CDT	Thunderstorm Wind	Roanoke, IL	Thunderstorm winds moved one grain bin off its foundation and caused another one to cave in 3 miles north of Roanoke. Also, a storage building had its north facing doors blown in and numerous tree limbs were blown down. No injuries were reported.
May 19, 6:40 PM CDT	Thunderstorm Wind	Countywide, IL	Numerous trees and tree limbs were blown down in Pekin, Hopedale, Delavan, Minier, and Armington as a severe thunderstorm moved through the area. No injuries or structural damage were reported.

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 watch it was issued in

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

Issued	Product	Office	Lasted
May 19, 2:00 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	5 hr
May 19, 6:00 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Lincoln, IL (KILX), launched 12:00Z, 11.4 hours before the alert went out and 106 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-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.

Hodograph

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: 1768 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -211 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1007 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 29 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 134 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 108 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.

518 
WUUS1 KSPI 192327 RRA
SVRSPI
ILC057-143-179-203-200015-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LINCOLN IL
626 PM CDT TUE MAY 19 1998

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LINCOLN HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR
  FULTON COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL ILLINOIS
  PEORIA COUNTY IN CENTRAL ILLINOIS
  TAZEWELL COUNTY IN CENTRAL ILLINOIS
  WOODFORD COUNTY IN CENTRAL ILLINOIS


* UNTIL 715 PM CDT

* AT 623 PM CDT LINCOLN DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A LINE OF SEVERE
  THUNDERSTORMS EXTENDING FROM WASHBURN TO CANTON TO JUST SOUTH OF
  AVON...17 MILES NORTHWEST OF  CANTON....MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 20 MPH.

* THIS STORM IS EXPECTED TO AFFECT AREAS AROUND...
  METAMORA
  CHILLICOTHE
  PEORIA
  CANTON
  LEWISTOWN



THIS STORM WILL PRODUCE DAMAGING WINDS AND LARGE HAIL. MOVE TO A
STURDY BUILDING AND STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

REMEMBER...SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS MAY PRODUCE TORNADOES AT ANY TIME.

KETCHAM

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this severe thunderstorm warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Lincoln, IL wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at May 19, 1:57 PM CDT, 4 hours 29 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 19, 1:57 PM CDT, 4 hours 29 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LINCOLN IL
157 PM CDT TUE MAY 19 1998

WELL...SPC HAS ISSUED A WATCH FOR NRN PTNS OF THE CWA...SO LET THE
GAMES BEGIN HERE IN CENTRAL ILLINOIS.

DID A SPECIAL 18Z LAUNCH TODAY...UNMODIFIED SOUNDING HAD CAPES NEAR
4000...WITH LITTLE OR NO CAP LEFT. SO WE ARE JUST WAITING FOR THINGS TO
EXPLODE. SINCE THIS WILL BE DIURNALLY DRIVEN...JUST EXPECT ACTIVITY
THIS EVENING AND THEN QUITE FOR THE REST OF THE NIGHT. LOW TEMPS
TONIGHT IN THE LOWER TO MIDDLE 60S STILL LOOKS GOOD.

FOR TOMORROW...MORE OF THE SAME WITH PARTLY SUNNY SKIES AND TEMPS A
LITTLE COOLER THAN TODAY/S...WHICH CURRENT FORECAST HANDLES WELL.

PIA   63/85  +2
SPI   65/87  42
DEC   64/87  42
CMI   64/87  42
LWV   65/87  42

BYRD

In the hours before

Special weather statement, May 19, 3:56 PM CDT, 2 hours 30 minutes before

ILZ027>031-036>038-200000-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LINCOLN IL
356 PM CDT TUE MAY 19 1998

...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM CDT...

AS OF 350 PM CDT...NO THUNDERSTORMS HAVE DEVELOPED OVER CENTRAL
ILLINOIS. HOWEVER...CONDITIONS REMAIN FAVORABLE FOR THE DEVELOPMENT
OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS...SO KEEP ALERT TO THE CHANGING WEATHER
CONDITIONS AND LISTEN TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO...TV...CABLE OR
COMMERCIAL RADIO FOR FURTHER STATEMENTS.

BYRD

Special weather statement, May 19, 5:36 PM CDT, 50 minutes before

ILZ027>031-036>038-040>057-061-192340-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LINCOLN IL
536 PM CDT TUE MAY 19 1998

...THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH NUMBER 368 HAS BEEN REISSUED AS
NUMBER 371...

THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS REISSUED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH
FOR MOST OF CENTRAL ILLINOIS.  THIS NEW WATCH 371 REPLACES THE
WATCH THAT WAS IN EFFECT UNTIL 7PM.  THE NEW WATCH IS IN EFFECT TILL
MIDNIGHT FOR MOST OF CENTRAL ILLINOIS. THIS WATCH ALSO EXTENDS
FARTHER SOUTH THAN THE ORIGINAL WATCH.

KETCHAM

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
May 19, 5:01 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ILX	Knox	44 min
May 19, 5:14 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ILX	Vermilion	31 min
May 19, 5:24 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ILX	Peoria	36 min
May 19, 5:42 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	ILX	Fulton, Knox, Peoria	48 min
May 19, 5:50 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ILX	Vermilion	40 min
May 19, 5:55 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ILX	Marshall, Stark	50 min
May 19, 6:33 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	ILX	Vermilion	42 min
May 19, 6:49 PM CDT	Flash Flood Warning	ILX	Fulton	3 hr
May 19, 6:58 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ILX	Logan, Mason	47 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Illinois, 1998 Every severe thunderstorm warning in 1998

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.