Alert archive / Illinois / Tornado Warnings in 2004

Tornado Warning 15, NWS Lincoln, IL

May 23, 2004McLean County, Illinois

NWS Lincoln, IL issued this tornado warning at May 23, 2004, 6:03 PM CDT for McLean County, Illinois. It was in force for 57 min. 6 reports 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: May 23, 2004, 6:03 PM CDT (23:03 UTC)
Expired: May 23, 2004, 7:00 PM CDT
In force: 57 min
Issued by: NWS Lincoln, IL
Area: Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County McLean County, IL

The radar

The Lincoln radar (KILX), 50 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:06 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
May 23, 6:07 PM CDT	HAIL 1.75	Bloomington, IL
May 23, 6:07 PM CDT	HAIL 1.75	Bloomington, IL
May 23, 6:12 PM CDT	HAIL 1	Bloomington, IL
May 23, 6:12 PM CDT	HAIL 1	Bloomington, IL
May 23, 6:12 PM CDT	HAIL 1	Bloomington, IL
May 23, 6:12 PM CDT	HAIL 1.75	Bloomington, IL

Local storm reports filed while the alert was in force, from inside its polygon or its counties.

The nearest sounding before it

Lincoln, IL (KILX), launched 12:00Z, 11.1 hours before the alert went out and 49 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: 435 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -95 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 621 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 33 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 18 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 59 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 0.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WFUS53 KILX 232303
TORILX
ILC113-240000-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LINCOLN IL
603 PM CDT SUN MAY 23 2004

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LINCOLN HAS ISSUED A

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

* UNTIL 700 PM CDT

* AT 603 PM CDT...RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WITH STRONG
  ROTATION OVER SHIRLEY...OR ABOUT 9 MILES SOUTHWEST OF
  BLOOMINGTON...MOVING EAST AT 35 MPH. THIS STORM COULD PRODUCE A
  TORNADO AT ANY TIME. IN ADDITION TO THE THREAT OF A TORNADO...LARGE
  HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS CAN BE EXPECTED WITH THIS STORM. GO TO A
  SAFE PLACE NOW

* THE TORNADO IS EXPECTED TO BE NEAR...
  BLOOMINGTON
  NORMAL
  DOWNS
  HUDSON
  TOWANDA
  HOLDER
  COOKSVILLE
  ELLSWORTH

OTHER LOCATIONS IN THIS WARNING INCLUDE...ARROWSMITH...CHENOA...
COLFAX...LEXINGTON...PLEASANT HILL AND SAYBROOK.

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 4050 8921 4033 8912 4041 8851 4075 8872

$$

BARKER

NNNN

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
May 23, 11:52 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ILX	Clay, Effingham, Jasper	38 min
May 23, 12:20 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ILX	Cumberland	40 min
May 23, 12:28 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ILX	Clay, Effingham, Jasper, Richland	62 min
May 23, 12:35 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ILX	Clark, Crawford	40 min
May 23, 1:19 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ILX	Vermilion	41 min
May 23, 5:06 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	ILX	Scott	54 min
May 23, 5:42 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	ILX	Morgan	63 min
May 23, 6:23 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	ILX	Sangamon	67 min
May 23, 6:38 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	ILX	Christian	67 min
May 23, 6:43 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	ILX	Morgan	32 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Illinois, 2004 Every tornado warning in 2004 Tornadoes in 2004

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; local storm reports from the same archive; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.