Alert archive / Illinois / Tornado Watches in 2000

Tornado Watch 309

May 18, 200046 counties in Illinois; 21 counties in Indiana; 27 counties in Missouri

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at May 18, 2000, 6:00 PM CDT for 46 counties in Illinois; 21 counties in Indiana; 27 counties in Missouri. It was in force for 5 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
May 18, 2000, 6:00 PM CDT (23:00 UTC)
Expired
May 18, 2000, 11:00 PM CDT
In force
5 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
All 94 counties

Bond County, IL, Champaign County, IL, Christian County, IL, Clark County, IL, Clay County, IL, Clinton County, IL, Coles County, IL, Cumberland County, IL, DeWitt County, IL, Douglas County, IL, Edgar County, IL, Effingham County, IL, Fayette County, IL, Ford County, IL, Franklin County, IL, Greene County, IL, Grundy County, IL, Iroquois County, IL, Jackson County, IL, Jasper County, IL, Jefferson County, IL, Jersey County, IL, Kankakee County, IL, Livingston County, IL, Logan County, IL, Macon County, IL, Macoupin County, IL, Madison County, IL, Marion County, IL, McLean County, IL, Menard County, IL, Monroe County, IL, Montgomery County, IL, Moultrie County, IL, Perry County, IL, Piatt County, IL, Randolph County, IL, Richland County, IL, Saint Clair County, IL, Sangamon County, IL, Shelby County, IL, Union County, IL, Vermilion County, IL, Washington County, IL, Wayne County, IL, Will County, IL, Benton County, IN, Carroll County, IN, Cass County, IN, Fountain County, IN, Fulton County, IN, Jasper County, IN, Kosciusko County, IN, Lake County, IN, LaPorte County, IN, Marshall County, IN, Montgomery County, IN, Newton County, IN, Parke County, IN, Porter County, IN, Pulaski County, IN, Starke County, IN, Tippecanoe County, IN, Vermillion County, IN, Vigo County, IN, Warren County, IN, White County, IN, Bollinger County, MO, Butler County, MO, Cape Girardeau County, MO, Carter County, MO, City of Saint Louis, MO, Crawford County, MO, Dent County, MO, Douglas County, MO, Franklin County, MO, Howell County, MO, Iron County, MO, Jefferson County, MO, Madison County, MO, Oregon County, MO, Ozark County, MO, Perry County, MO, Reynolds County, MO, Ripley County, MO, Saint Charles County, MO, Saint Francois County, MO, Saint Louis County, MO, Sainte Genevieve County, MO, Shannon County, MO, Stoddard County, MO, Texas County, MO, Washington County, MO, Wayne County, MO

The radar

The St Louis radar (KLSX), 63 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:01 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.

Warnings issued inside it

31 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 18, 6:01 PM CDTTornado WarningLOTFord, Livingston44 min
May 18, 6:09 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningSGFHowell36 min
May 18, 6:13 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLOTLivingston32 min
May 18, 6:25 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLOTLake35 min
May 18, 6:29 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLSXReynolds46 min
May 18, 6:33 PM CDTTornado WarningLOTFord, Livingston27 min
May 18, 6:36 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLOTIroquois, Kankakee39 min
May 18, 6:36 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLOTWill39 min
May 18, 6:37 PM CDTTornado WarningILXMcLean68 min
May 18, 6:47 PM CDTTornado WarningLOTLake28 min
May 18, 6:48 PM CDTTornado WarningILXLogan42 min
May 18, 6:52 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLOTJasper, Lake, Porter68 min
May 18, 6:52 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLOTNewton68 min
May 18, 7:00 PM CDTTornado WarningLOTFord30 min
May 18, 7:04 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningIWXLaPorte, Starke56 min
May 18, 7:08 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLSXIron37 min
May 18, 7:12 PM CDTTornado WarningLOTPorter33 min
May 18, 7:14 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLOTIroquois61 min
May 18, 7:15 PM CDTTornado WarningILXDeWitt45 min
May 18, 7:19 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningIWXPulaski61 min
May 18, 7:28 PM CDTTornado WarningILXChampaign, Piatt62 min
May 18, 7:34 PM CDTTornado WarningLSXIron, Madison41 min
May 18, 7:35 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningPAHRipley55 min
May 18, 7:40 PM CDTTornado WarningLOTFord, Iroquois35 min
May 18, 7:49 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningIWXFulton, Marshall61 min
May 18, 8:13 PM CDTTornado WarningLSXMadison17 min
May 18, 8:21 PM CDTTornado WarningILXVermilion54 min
May 18, 8:21 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningIWXKosciusko39 min
May 18, 8:21 PM CDTTornado WarningPAHBollinger39 min
May 18, 8:45 PM CDTTornado WarningPAHCape Girardeau45 min
May 18, 9:54 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningINDCarroll, Clinton, Tippecanoe36 min

The nearest sounding before it

Lincoln, IL (KILX), launched 12:00Z, 11.0 hours before the alert went out and 217 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 2000-05-18Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 557 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, Lincoln, IL at 12:00Z on 2000-05-18The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 328 square meters per square second.1939587897Sfc1 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
557 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-308 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1218 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
52 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
328 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
351 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.5

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

396 
WWUS9 KMKC 182233
SEL9  

SEL9  
MKC WW 182233
ILZ000-INZ000-MOZ000-190400-

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 309
STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
533 PM CDT THU MAY 18 2000

THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF

   NORTHERN ILLINOIS                           
   NORTHWEST INDIANA                            
   EASTERN AND SOUTHERN MISSOURI                           

EFFECTIVE THIS THURSDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING FROM 600 PM UNTIL
1100 PM CDT.

TORNADOES...HAIL TO 3 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS
TO 70 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.

THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 80 STATUTE MILES EAST AND WEST
OF A LINE FROM 25 MILES SOUTHEAST OF WEST PLAINS MISSOURI TO 80
MILES NORTH OF LAFAYETTE INDIANA.

REMEMBER...A TORNADO WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR
TORNADOES AND SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH AREA. 
PERSONS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING
WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE
WARNINGS.

OTHER WATCH INFORMATION...THIS TORNADO WATCH REPLACES TORNADO WATCH
NUMBER 305.  WATCH NUMBER 305 WILL NOT BE IN EFFECT AFTER 600 PM
CDT.  CONTINUE...WW 303...WW 304...WW 306...WW 307...WW 308...

DISCUSSION...STRONG BOW COMPLEX WITH EMBEDDED SUPOERCELLS EXPECTED 
TO SWEEP E ACROSS NRN IL INTO NRN IND THIS EVENING AS STORMS
CONTINUE TO DEVELOP IN FOCUSED LOW LEVEL CONVERGENCE ZONE BENEATH
AXIS OF 60-70 MID LEVEL WSWLY FLOW.  FARTHER S...MORE ISOLATED
SEVERE STORMS...INCLUDING SUPERCELLS...LIKELY TO DEVELOP OVER THE
NEXT SEVERAL HOURS INVOF DRY LINE INTO SRN MO.  

AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 3 INCHES.  EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND
GUSTS TO 60 KNOTS.  A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 500. 
MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 26040.


...CORFIDI

413,0852 362,0900 362,0925 413,0882

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 18, 11:30 AM CDTTornado WatchSPCBureau, Champaign, DeWitt, Ford, Fulton, Grundy and 26 more6 hr
May 18, 3:00 PM CDTTornado WatchSPCAdams, Brown, Bureau, Calhoun, Cass, Christian and 39 more6 hr
May 18, 11:00 AM CDTTornado WatchSPCAdams, Allen, Benton, Blackford, Boone, Carroll and 50 more5 hr
May 18, 1:30 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAdams, Allen, DeKalb, LaGrange, Noble, Steuben6 hr

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Illinois, 2000Tornado Watches in Missouri, 2000Tornado Watches in Indiana, 2000Every tornado watch in 2000

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.