Tornado Watch 185

Issued

Apr 23, 2011, 1:04 AM CDT (06:04 UTC)

Expired

Apr 23, 2011, 5:00 AM CDT

In force

4 hr

Issued by

the Storm Prediction Center

Largest hail expected

1.5 in

Strongest gust expected

60 kt

The Evansville,IN radar (KVWX), 68 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 06:04 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.

Two or more tornadoes

30%

One or more EF2 to EF5 tornadoes

10%

Ten or more severe wind reports

30%

One or more gusts of 65 knots or more

20%

Ten or more severe hail reports

30%

One or more hailstones of 2 inches or more

10%

Six or more combined severe hail and wind reports

70%

• Mesoscale Discussion 526Apr 22, 9:20 PM CDT
• Mesoscale Discussion 530Apr 23, 2:33 AM CDT
• Mesoscale Discussion 531Apr 23, 3:41 AM CDT
• Mesoscale Discussion 532Apr 23, 4:22 AM CDT

946 
WWUS20 KWNS 230605
SEL5  
SPC WW 230605
ILZ000-INZ000-KYZ000-MOZ000-OHZ000-231000-

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 185
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
205 AM EDT SAT APR 23 2011

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

       SOUTHERN ILLINOIS
       SOUTHERN INDIANA
       WESTERN AND CENTRAL KENTUCKY
       SOUTHEAST MISSOURI
       EXTREME SOUTHWEST OHIO

EFFECTIVE THIS SATURDAY MORNING FROM 205 AM UNTIL 600 AM EDT.

TORNADOES...HAIL TO 1.5 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND
GUSTS TO 70 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE
AREAS.

THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS APPROXIMATELY ALONG AND 50 STATUTE
MILES NORTH AND SOUTH OF A LINE FROM 40 MILES NORTHWEST OF POPLAR
BLUFF MISSOURI TO 40 MILES EAST NORTHEAST OF LEXINGTON KENTUCKY. 
FOR A COMPLETE DEPICTION OF THE WATCH SEE THE ASSOCIATED WATCH
OUTLINE UPDATE (WOUS64 KWNS WOU5).

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 181. WATCH NUMBER 181 WILL NOT BE IN EFFECT AFTER
205 AM EDT. CONTINUE...WW 183...WW 184...

DISCUSSION...LARGE BROKEN CLUSTER OF STRONG/SEVERE STORMS WILL
PERSIST FOR A FEW MORE HOURS BEFORE INSTABILITY WEAKENS.  A FEW
DAMAGING GUSTS AND AN ISOLATED TORNADO OR TWO WILL BE POSSIBLE WITH
STORMS FROM CENTRAL KY INTO SE INDIANA/SW OH ON THE LEADING EDGE OF
THE CONVECTION WHERE LOW-LEVEL SHEAR WILL BE STRONGEST AND THE
ATMOSPHERE HAS YET TO BE OVERTURNED.  FARTHER W...PRIOR CONVECTION
HAS STABILIZED THE BOUNDARY LAYER SOME...BUT A FEED OF MODERATE
INSTABILITY ABOVE THE SURFACE WILL MAINTAIN A THREAT FOR SLIGHTLY
ELEVATED STORMS WITH LARGE HAIL AND ISOLATED DAMAGING GUSTS FROM SE
MO INTO WRN KY/SRN IL.

AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 1.5 INCHES. EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE
WIND GUSTS TO 60 KNOTS. A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO
500. MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 26040.


...THOMPSON

Tornado Watches in Kentucky, 2011Tornado Watches in Illinois, 2011Tornado Watches in Indiana, 2011Every tornado watch in 2011

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.