Alert archive / Illinois / Tornado Warnings in 2002

Tornado Warning 5, NWS Paducah, KY

April 21, 2002Franklin County, Illinois

NWS Paducah, KY issued this tornado warning at Apr 21, 2002, 3:40 PM CDT for Franklin County, Illinois. It was in force for 35 min. 1 report came from inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline as issued, with what was reported inside it.

The facts

Issued: Apr 21, 2002, 3:40 PM CDT (20:40 UTC)
Expired: Apr 21, 2002, 4:15 PM CDT
In force: 35 min
Issued by: NWS Paducah, KY
Area: Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Franklin County, IL

What was reported inside it

Time	Report	Where	Remark
Apr 21, 3:45 PM CDT	Hail 1.75	Rend Lake South, IL	Golf ball size hail occurred at the Sesser exit of Interstate 57, and half-dollar size hail occurred at Rend Lake. At least a couple dozen vehicles and 50 homes were damaged to some degree.

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
Apr 21, 11:00 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	5 hr
Apr 21, 2:15 PM CDT	Tornado Watch	SPC	4 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Lincoln, IL (KILX), launched 12:00Z, 8.7 hours before the alert went out and 235 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: 1 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: 0 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 417 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 71 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 504 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 540 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 
WFUS53 KPAH 212040
TORPAH
ILC055-212115-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY
340 PM CDT SUN APR 21 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PADUCAH HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  NORTHERN FRANKLIN COUNTY IN SOUTH CENTRAL ILLINOIS

* UNTIL 415 PM CDT.

* AT 339 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO OVER WEST
  CITY...MOVING EAST AT 50 MPH.

* THE TORNADO IS EXPECTED TO BE...
RURAL EASTERN FRANKLIN COUNTY AT 350 PM CDT.

* LOCATIONS IN THE WARNING INCLUDE BENTON...CHRISTOPHER...SESSER AND 
VALIER.

SEEK SHELTER NOW

MOVE INTO A BASEMENT...OR INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF A
STURDY BUILDING. ABANDON MOBILE HOMES AND VEHICLES.

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

LAT...LON 3812 8909 3796 8909 3794 8872 3812 8871

The office that day

Everything else NWS Paducah, KY issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Apr 21, 2:53 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PAH	Perry	52 min
Apr 21, 3:28 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PAH	Franklin	32 min
Apr 21, 3:36 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PAH	Jefferson	14 min
Apr 21, 4:01 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	PAH	Wayne	29 min
Apr 21, 4:04 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	PAH	Hamilton	26 min
Apr 21, 4:07 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PAH	Jackson	23 min
Apr 21, 4:26 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PAH	Franklin	34 min
Apr 21, 4:29 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	PAH	White	31 min
Apr 21, 4:47 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PAH	Hamilton, Saline	28 min
Apr 21, 4:50 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PAH	Union	40 min
Apr 21, 5:07 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PAH	Gallatin, White	23 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Illinois, 2002 Every tornado warning in 2002 Tornadoes in 2002

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.