Alert archive / Illinois / Tornado Warnings in 2011

Tornado Warning 4, NWS Chicago, IL

May 7, 2011Ford County, Iroquois County, Illinois

NWS Chicago, IL issued this tornado warning at May 7, 2011, 4:06 PM CDT for Ford County, Iroquois County, Illinois. It was in force for 39 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
May 7, 2011, 4:06 PM CDT (21:06 UTC)
Expired
May 7, 2011, 4:45 PM CDT
In force
39 min
Issued by
NWS Chicago, IL
Area
Storm-based polygon

Counties Ford County, IL, Iroquois County, IL

The radar

The Lincoln radar (KILX), 108 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:08 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.

The watch it was issued in

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

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
May 7, 2:59 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPC7 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Lincoln, IL (KILX), launched 12:00Z, 9.1 hours before the alert went out and 52 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 2011-05-07Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 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 12:00Z on 2011-05-07The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 134 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
1168 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
68 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
134 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
351 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.2

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

954 
WFUS53 KLOT 072106
TORLOT
ILC053-075-072145-
/O.NEW.KLOT.TO.W.0004.110507T2106Z-110507T2145Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHICAGO/ROMEOVILLE IL
406 PM CDT SAT MAY 7 2011

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN CHICAGO HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  SOUTHEASTERN FORD COUNTY...
  SOUTHWESTERN IROQUOIS COUNTY...

* UNTIL 445 PM CDT

* AT 404 PM...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO. THIS DANGEROUS
  STORM WAS LOCATED NEAR PAXTON...AND MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 40 MPH.

* LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE...
  MAINLY RURAL AREAS OF SOUTHEASTERN FORD COUNTY.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

TAKE COVER NOW. MOVE TO AN INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF A
STURDY BUILDING. AVOID WINDOWS. IF IN A MOBILE HOME...A VEHICLE OR
OUTDOORS...MOVE TO THE CLOSEST SUBSTANTIAL SHELTER AND PROTECT
YOURSELF FROM FLYING DEBRIS.

&&

LAT...LON 4042 8827 4056 8815 4048 8793 4040 8793
      4040 8822
TIME...MOT...LOC 2106Z 305DEG 34KT 4045 8809

$$

RODRIGUEZ
3 follow-up statements
489 
WWUS53 KLOT 072119
SVSLOT

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHICAGO/ROMEOVILLE IL
419 PM CDT SAT MAY 7 2011

ILC053-075-072145-
/O.CON.KLOT.TO.W.0004.000000T0000Z-110507T2145Z/
IROQUOIS IL-FORD IL-
419 PM CDT SAT MAY 7 2011

...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR SOUTHEASTERN FORD AND
SOUTHWESTERN IROQUOIS COUNTIES UNTIL 445 PM CDT...

AT 415 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO.  THIS DANGEROUS
STORM WAS LOCATED NEAR PAXTON...MOVING EAST AT 25 MPH.

IN ADDITION...A WEATHER SPOTTER NEAR PAXTON IS REPORTING ROTATION 
OVER THE PAXTON AREA.   

THIS TORNADO WILL AFFECT PAXTON NOW! 
MAINLY RURAL AREAS EAST OF PAXTON...OVER SOUTHEASTERN FORD COUNTY.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

TAKE COVER NOW. MOVE TO AN INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF A
STURDY BUILDING. AVOID WINDOWS. IF IN A MOBILE HOME...A VEHICLE OR
OUTDOORS...MOVE TO THE CLOSEST SUBSTANTIAL SHELTER AND PROTECT
YOURSELF FROM FLYING DEBRIS.

&&

LAT...LON 4042 8827 4056 8815 4048 8793 4040 8793
      4040 8822
TIME...MOT...LOC 2117Z 136DEG 21KT 4047 8810

$$

MERZLOCK
629 
WWUS53 KLOT 072136
SVSLOT

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHICAGO/ROMEOVILLE IL
436 PM CDT SAT MAY 7 2011

ILC075-072144-
/O.CAN.KLOT.TO.W.0004.000000T0000Z-110507T2145Z/
IROQUOIS IL-
436 PM CDT SAT MAY 7 2011

...THE TORNADO WARNING FOR SOUTHWESTERN IROQUOIS COUNTY IS
CANCELLED...

THE STORM WHICH PROMPTED THE WARNING HAS MOVED OUT THE WARNED AREA.

LAT...LON 4040 8820 4043 8817 4049 8813 4048 8793
      4040 8793
TIME...MOT...LOC 2134Z 309DEG 147KT 4030 8781

$$

ILC053-072145-
/O.CON.KLOT.TO.W.0004.000000T0000Z-110507T2145Z/
FORD IL-
436 PM CDT SAT MAY 7 2011

...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR SOUTHEASTERN FORD COUNTY
UNTIL 445 PM CDT...

AT 430 PM CDT...DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 
CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO.  THIS STORM WAS LOCATED 6 MILES 
SOUTHEAST OF PAXTON...MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 25 MPH.

THIS TORNADO WILL AFFECT MAINLY RURAL AREAS OF SOUTHEASTERN FORD
COUNTY.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

TO REPEAT...A TORNADO IS ON THE GROUND. TAKE COVER NOW. MOVE TO AN
INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF A STURDY BUILDING. AVOID
WINDOWS. IF IN A MOBILE HOME...A VEHICLE OR OUTDOORS...MOVE TO THE
CLOSEST SUBSTANTIAL SHELTER AND PROTECT YOURSELF FROM FLYING DEBRIS.

&&

LAT...LON 4040 8820 4043 8817 4049 8813 4048 8793
      4040 8793
TIME...MOT...LOC 2134Z 309DEG 147KT 4030 8781

$$

MERZLOCK
431 
WWUS53 KLOT 072145
SVSLOT

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHICAGO/ROMEOVILLE IL
445 PM CDT SAT MAY 7 2011

ILC053-072155-
/O.EXP.KLOT.TO.W.0004.000000T0000Z-110507T2145Z/
FORD IL-
445 PM CDT SAT MAY 7 2011

...THE TORNADO WARNING FOR SOUTHEASTERN FORD COUNTY HAS EXPIRED...

THE STORM WHICH PROMPTED THE WARNING HASMOVED OUT OF THE WARNED AREA.

LAT...LON 4040 8820 4043 8817 4049 8813 4048 8793
      4040 8793
TIME...MOT...LOC 2145Z 309DEG 147KT 3999 8738

$$

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 7, 3:28 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLOTFord, Iroquois, Livingston32 min
May 7, 3:49 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLOTFord, Iroquois41 min
May 7, 4:32 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLOTIroquois58 min
May 7, 5:33 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLOTKankakee33 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Illinois, 2011Every tornado warning in 2011Tornadoes in 2011

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.