Alert archive / Illinois / Tornado Watches in 2025

Tornado Watch 101

April 2, 202511 counties in Illinois; 8 counties in Missouri

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Apr 2, 2025, 4:19 PM CDT for 11 counties in Illinois; 8 counties in Missouri. It was in force for 3 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Apr 2, 2025, 4:19 PM CDT (21:19 UTC)
Expired
Apr 2, 2025, 7:29 PM CDT
In force
3 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
Largest hail expected
2 in
Strongest gust expected
60 kt

Counties Bond County, IL, Clinton County, IL, Fayette County, IL, Macoupin County, IL, Madison County, IL, Marion County, IL, Monroe County, IL, Montgomery County, IL, Randolph County, IL, Saint Clair County, IL, Washington County, IL, City of Saint Louis, MO, Iron County, MO, Jefferson County, MO, Madison County, MO, Reynolds County, MO, Saint Francois County, MO, Saint Louis County, MO, Sainte Genevieve County, MO

The radar

The St Louis radar (KLSX), 88 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:18 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 SPC expected

The probabilities SPC published with the watch, for the watch area over its life.

Two or more tornadoes
80%
One or more EF2 to EF5 tornadoes
60%
Ten or more severe wind reports
80%
One or more gusts of 65 knots or more
10%
Ten or more severe hail reports
80%
One or more hailstones of 2 inches or more
80%
Six or more combined severe hail and wind reports
95%

Warnings issued inside it

16 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 2, 4:30 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLSXMonroe, Randolph30 min
Apr 2, 4:38 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLSXBond, Clinton, Madison, Saint Clair52 min
Apr 2, 4:55 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLSXIron, Reynolds45 min
Apr 2, 5:00 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLSXRandolph, Saint Clair, Washington36 min
Apr 2, 5:11 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLSXBond, Fayette, Montgomery64 min
Apr 2, 5:16 PM CDTTornado Warning Tornado observedLSXBond, Fayette, Montgomery44 min
Apr 2, 5:25 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLSXClinton, Fayette, Marion, Washington50 min
Apr 2, 5:28 PM CDTTornado WarningLSXClinton, Marion, Washington47 min
Apr 2, 5:38 PM CDTTornado WarningLSXFayette34 min
Apr 2, 5:40 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLSXMadison22 min
Apr 2, 5:46 PM CDTTornado WarningLSXMadison, Saint Francois23 min
Apr 2, 5:56 PM CDTTornado WarningLSXFayette10 min
Apr 2, 6:15 PM CDTTornado WarningLSXMarion15 min
Apr 2, 6:19 PM CDTTornado WarningLSXRandolph30 min
Apr 2, 6:28 PM CDTTornado WarningLSXWashington15 min
Apr 2, 6:48 PM CDTTornado WarningLSXMarion24 min

Discussions around it

SPC mesoscale discussions over the same counties from four hours before the watch to its end.

The nearest sounding before it

Lincoln, IL (KILX), launched 12:00Z, 9.3 hours before the alert went out and 196 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 2025-04-02Temperature 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 2025-04-02The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 948 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
864 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
64 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
948 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
1028 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
1.9

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted.

511 
WWUS20 KWNS 022116
SEL1  
SPC WW 022116
ILZ000-MOZ000-030000-

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
Tornado Watch Number 101
NWS Storm Prediction Center Norman OK
420 PM CDT Wed Apr 2 2025

The NWS Storm Prediction Center has issued a

* Tornado Watch for portions of 
  West Central Illinois
  East Central Missouri

* Effective this Wednesday afternoon and evening from 420 PM
  until 700 PM CDT.

* Primary threats include...
  Several tornadoes and a couple intense tornadoes likely
  Widespread large hail and scattered very large hail events to 2
    inches in diameter likely
  Widespread damaging wind gusts to 70 mph likely

SUMMARY...A line of severe thunderstorms will continue to track
eastward across the St Louis metro area and vicinity through the
next few hours, posing a risk of all severe hazards.

The tornado watch area is approximately along and 35 statute miles
east and west of a line from 65 miles northeast of Alton IL to 45
miles south southwest of Farmington MO. For a complete depiction of
the watch see the associated watch outline update (WOUS64 KWNS
WOU1).

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

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...CONTINUE...WW 98...WW 99...WW 100...

AVIATION...Tornadoes and a few severe thunderstorms with hail
surface and aloft to 2 inches. Extreme turbulence and surface wind
gusts to 60 knots. A few cumulonimbi with maximum tops to 500. Mean
storm motion vector 24040.

...Hart

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 2, 8:47 AM CDTTornado WatchSPCBond, Calhoun, Clinton, Fayette, Greene, Jersey and 9 more9 hr
Apr 2, 9:48 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBrown, Cass, Champaign, DeWitt, Ford, Fulton and 20 more117 min
Apr 2, 12:51 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAlexander, Johnson, Massac, Pope, Pulaski114 min
Apr 2, 2:43 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBond, Champaign, Christian, Clark, Clay, Clinton and 34 more2 hr
Apr 2, 2:52 PM CDTTornado Watch PDSSPCAlexander, Edwards, Franklin, Gallatin, Hamilton, Hardin and 13 more9 hr
Apr 2, 3:17 PM CDTTornado WatchSPCChampaign, Christian, Clark, Clay, Coles, Crawford and 23 more7 hr
Apr 2, 5:35 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAlexander, Franklin, Gallatin, Hamilton, Hardin, Johnson and 7 more115 min
Apr 2, 5:40 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCChampaign, Iroquois, Vermilion95 min
Apr 1, 7:25 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAndrew, Atchison, Buchanan, Clinton, Daviess, DeKalb and 8 more10 hr
Apr 1, 8:56 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAtchison64 min
Apr 1, 11:03 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAndrew, Buchanan, DeKalb, Holt117 min
Apr 2, 1:27 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBates, Benton, Buchanan, Caldwell, Carroll, Cass and 21 more2 hr
Apr 2, 2:28 AM CDTTornado WatchSPCAdair, Andrew, Bates, Buchanan, Caldwell, Carroll and 25 more8 hr
Apr 2, 4:30 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBarry, Barton, Benton, Camden, Cedar, Christian and 18 more2 hr
Apr 2, 5:20 AM CDTTornado WatchSPCBarry, Barton, Benton, Camden, Cedar, Christian and 17 more7 hr
Apr 2, 6:57 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCMcDonald2 hr
Apr 2, 7:17 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAudrain, Benton, Boone, Callaway, Camden, Cole and 19 more118 min
Apr 2, 11:09 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCCarter, Douglas, Howell, Oregon, Ozark, Ripley and 3 more96 min
Apr 2, 1:56 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCCarter, Crawford, Dent, Douglas, Franklin, Howell and 13 more94 min
Apr 2, 6:12 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCDunklin, Pemiscot93 min

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Illinois, 2025Tornado Watches in Missouri, 2025Every tornado watch in 2025

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.