Alert archive / Illinois / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2020

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 77, NWS Chicago, IL

July 15, 2020Livingston County, Illinois

NWS Chicago, IL issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jul 15, 2020, 3:28 PM CDT for Livingston County, Illinois. It was in force for 62 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Jul 15, 2020, 3:28 PM CDT (20:28 UTC)
Expired
Jul 15, 2020, 4:30 PM CDT
In force
62 min
Issued by
NWS Chicago, IL
Area
Storm-based polygon
Hail
1.5 in
Wind
60.0 mph

County Livingston County, IL

The radar

The Chicago radar (KLOT), 89 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 20:30 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
Jul 15, 3:14 PM CDTTornado WatchSPC6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Lincoln, IL (KILX), launched 12:00Z, 8.5 hours before the alert went out and 83 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 2020-07-15Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Lincoln, IL at 12:00Z on 2020-07-15The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 30 square meters per square second.1939Sfc1 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
1529 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
20 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
30 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
32 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this severe thunderstorm warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Chicago, IL wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Jul 15, 3:26 PM CDT, 2 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 15, 3:26 PM CDT, 2 minutes before
<!doctype html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
  <meta charset="utf-8">
  <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
  <title>Service Notice</title>
  <link rel="stylesheet" href="index.css">
</head>
<body>
  <main class="wrap">
    <section class="card" role="status" aria-live="polite">
      <div class="status" id="status">Temporary Notice</div>
      <h1 id="headline">This service is currently unavailable.</h1>
      <p id="message1">
        The site you requested is temporarily down for maintenance or an unexpected outage.
      </p>
      <p id="message2">
        Please try again in a few minutes.
      </p>
      <p class="small" id="detail">
        If you are an administrator, restore upstream service and remove the redirect/fallback rule when normal operations resume.
      </p>
    </section>
  </main>
  <script src="index.js"></script>
</body>
</html>
Hazardous weather outlook, Jul 15, 12:58 PM CDT, 2 hours 30 minutes before
Hazardous Weather Outlook
National Weather Service Chicago/Romeoville IL
1258 PM CDT Wed Jul 15 2020

ILZ003>006-008-010>013-019>021-023-032-033-039-103>108-INZ001-002-
010-011-019-161800-
Winnebago-Boone-McHenry-Lake IL-Ogle-Lee-De Kalb-Kane-DuPage-
La Salle-Kendall-Grundy-Kankakee-Livingston-Iroquois-Ford-
Northern Cook-Central Cook-Southern Cook-Northern Will-
Southern Will-Eastern Will-Lake IN-Porter-Newton-Jasper-Benton-
1258 PM CDT Wed Jul 15 2020 /158 PM EDT Wed Jul 15 2020/

This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for portions of North Central
Illinois...Northeast Illinois and Northwest Indiana.

.DAY ONE...This Afternoon and Tonight.

Weather hazards expected...

  Elevated Thunderstorm Risk...with an associated:
     Limited Tornado risk.
     Limited hail risk...up to quarter size.
     Limited damaging wind risk...up to 65 mph.
  Limited Flooding Risk.

DISCUSSION...

Scattered thunderstorms expected to develop across the area
this afternoon, and some of these storms could be strong to
severe with damaging wind and large hail the primary threats,
though a low tornado threat will exist as well. In addition,
thunderstorms will likely produce very heavy rainfall, which
could lead to localized flooding. While strong to severe
thunderstorms and localized flooding are possible area wide,
a greater severe and flooding threat appears to be primarily
south of Interstate 80 this afternoon into this evening.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Thursday through Tuesday.

Friday...
  Limited Thunderstorm Risk.
  Limited Excessive Heat Risk.
Saturday...
  Limited Thunderstorm Risk.
  Significant Excessive Heat Risk.
Sunday...
  Limited Thunderstorm Risk.
  Elevated Excessive Heat Risk.
Monday and Tuesday...
  Limited Thunderstorm Risk.
  Limited Excessive Heat Risk.

DISCUSSION:

Dangerous heat with peak heat indices of near or over 105 degrees
is becoming increasingly likely on Saturday and possibly on Sunday.
In addition, there will be periodic chances for thunderstorms,
especially next week. The thunderstorm threat could include a strong
to severe thunderstorm and flooding risk Saturday night into early
next week.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

  Spotters may be needed this afternoon into early this evening.

GENERAL STORM MOTION OF THE DAY:

  Moving toward the east-northeast at 30 to 35 mph.

LMZ740>745-161800-
Winthrop Harbor to Wilmette Harbor IL-
Wilmette Harbor to Northerly Island IL-
Northerly Island to Calumet Harbor IL-
Calumet Harbor IL to Gary IN-Gary to Burns Harbor IN-
Burns Harbor to Michigan City IN-
1258 PM CDT Wed Jul 15 2020

This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for portions of the Illinois
nearshore waters of Lake Michigan and the Indiana nearshore
waters of Lake Michigan.

.DAY ONE...This Afternoon and Tonight.

Weather hazards expected...

  Elevated Thunderstorm Risk...with an associated:
     Limited hail risk...up to quarter size.
     Limited thunderstorm wind gust risk...up to 50 knots.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Thursday through Tuesday.

Friday through Tuesday...
  Limited Thunderstorm Risk.

Kluber

Visit us at http://weather.gov/chicago

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Youtube at:
www.facebook.com/nwschicago
www.twitter.com/nwschicago
www.youtube.com/nwschicago

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 15, 3:18 AM CDTSpecial Weather StatementLOTWinnebago42 min
Jul 15, 4:10 PM CDTTornado Warning Tornado observedLOTLivingston35 min
Jul 15, 4:27 PM CDTTornado Warning Tornado observedLOTLivingston63 min
Jul 15, 4:42 PM CDTAreal Flood AdvisoryLOTLivingston3 hr
Jul 15, 5:11 PM CDTTornado WarningLOTFord, Iroquois45 min
Jul 15, 5:24 PM CDTAreal Flood AdvisoryLOTFord, Iroquois3 hr

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Illinois, 2020Every severe thunderstorm warning in 2020

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.