Alert archive / Illinois / Tornado Warnings in 2001

Tornado Warning 7, NWS Lincoln, IL

April 21, 2001McLean County, Illinois

NWS Lincoln, IL issued this tornado warning at Apr 21, 2001, 7:23 PM CDT for McLean County, Illinois. It was in force for 52 min. 1 report 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 21, 2001, 7:23 PM CDT (00:23 UTC)
Expired
Apr 21, 2001, 8:15 PM CDT
In force
52 min
Issued by
NWS Lincoln, IL
Area
Whole counties

County McLean County, IL

The radar

The Lincoln radar (KILX), 56 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 00:23 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 21, 7:56 PM CDTHail 0.75Colfax, 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 watch it was issued in

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

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
Apr 21, 6:00 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPC5 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Lincoln, IL (KILX), launched 00:00Z, 0.4 hours before the alert went out and 43 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 00:00Z on 2001-04-22Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1624 joules per kilogram.LCLEL10008507005003002001001 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 00:00Z on 2001-04-22The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 86 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
1624 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-2 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1215 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
34 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
86 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
95 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.5
Supercell composite
3.6

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WFUS53 KILX 220023
TORSPI
ILC113-220115-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LINCOLN IL
723 PM CDT SAT APR 21 2001

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LINCOLN HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  MCLEAN COUNTY IN CENTRAL ILLINOIS

* UNTIL 815 PM CDT

* AT 723 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED 
  A DEVELOPING TORNADO NEAR TOWANDA...OR ABOUT 6 MILES NORTHEAST OF 
  BLOOMINGTON...MOVING EAST AT 35 MPH.

* THE TORNADO IS EXPECTED TO BE NEAR...
  LEXINGTON
  COOKSVILLE
  COLFAX

YET ANOTHER SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WAS FOLLOWING RIGHT BEHIND THIS 
INITIAL STORM. THIS STORM WILL MOVE OVER THE SAME AREAS AS THE FIRST 
STORM...INCLUDING BLOOMINGTON/NORMAL. THIS STORM WILL HAVE THE 
POTENTIAL FOR LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS.

IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF THIS STORM...TAKE COVER IN A BASEMENT OR
INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR. VEHICLES AND MOBILE HOMES SHOULD
BE ABANDONED FOR A SAFER SHELTER.

REPORT SEVERE WEATHER OR ANY STORM DAMAGE TO YOUR LOCAL ESDA...OR THE
NEAREST LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY...FOR RELAY TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER
SERVICE. STAY TUNED FOR LATER STATEMENTS.

LAT...LON 4063 8896 4045 8895 4B046 8848 4069 8860

$$

NNNN
FRIEDERS

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 22, 1:12 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILXMason, Tazewell63 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Illinois, 2001Every tornado warning in 2001Tornadoes in 2001

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.