Alert archive / Missouri / Flood Watches in 2026

Flood Watch 4, NWS St. Louis, MO

May 18, 202620 counties in Missouri; 10 counties in Illinois

NWS St. Louis, MO issued this flood watch at May 18, 2026, 1:12 AM CDT for 20 counties in Missouri; 10 counties in Illinois. It took effect at May 18, 2026, 7:00 AM CDT. It was in force for 29 hr.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
May 18, 2026, 1:12 AM CDT (06:12 UTC)
In effect from
May 18, 2026, 7:00 AM CDT
Expired
May 19, 2026, 11:47 AM CDT
In force
29 hr
Issued by
NWS St. Louis, MO
Flood severity
None
All 30 counties

Bond County, IL, Calhoun County, IL, Clinton County, IL, Fayette County, IL, Jersey County, IL, Madison County, IL, Marion County, IL, Monroe County, IL, Saint Clair County, IL, Washington County, IL, Audrain County, MO, Boone County, MO, Callaway County, MO, City of Saint Louis, MO, Cole County, MO, Crawford County, MO, Franklin County, MO, Gasconade County, MO, Jefferson County, MO, Lincoln County, MO, Moniteau County, MO, Monroe County, MO, Montgomery County, MO, Osage County, MO, Pike County, MO, Ralls County, MO, Saint Charles County, MO, Saint Louis County, MO, Warren County, MO, Washington County, MO

The radar

The St Louis radar (KLSX), 14 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 06:15 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 nearest sounding before it

Lincoln, IL (KILX), launched 00:00Z, 6.2 hours before the alert went out and 248 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 00:00Z on 2026-05-18Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1199 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 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 00:00Z on 2026-05-18The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 12 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 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
1199 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-142 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1497 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
9 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
12 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
120 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 flood watch went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS St. Louis, MO wrote its last area forecast discussion before this flood watch went out at May 17, 10:37 PM CDT, 2 hours 35 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 17, 10:37 PM CDT, 2 hours 35 minutes before
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Hazardous weather outlook, May 17, 3:55 PM CDT, 9 hours 17 minutes before
Hazardous Weather Outlook
National Weather Service St Louis MO
355 PM CDT Sun May 17 2026

ILZ058>060-064-065-069-070-074-079-095>102-MOZ018-019-026-027-
034>036-041-042-047>052-059>065-072>075-084-085-099-182100-
Greene IL-Macoupin IL-Montgomery IL-Bond IL-Fayette IL-Clinton IL-
Marion IL-Washington IL-Randolph IL-Adams IL-Brown IL-Pike IL-
Calhoun IL-Jersey IL-Madison IL-Saint Clair IL-Monroe IL-Knox MO-
Lewis MO-Shelby MO-Marion MO-Monroe MO-Ralls MO-Pike MO-Boone MO-
Audrain MO-Moniteau MO-Cole MO-Osage MO-Callaway MO-Montgomery MO-
Lincoln MO-Gasconade MO-Warren MO-Saint Charles MO-Franklin MO-
Saint Louis MO-Saint Louis City MO-Jefferson MO-Crawford MO-
Washington MO-Saint Francois MO-Sainte Genevieve MO-Iron MO-
Madison MO-Reynolds MO-
355 PM CDT Sun May 17 2026

This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for portions of eastern and
central Missouri as well as west central and southwest Illinois.

.DAYS ONE THROUGH SEVEN...This afternoon through Saturday.

More detailed information can be accessed at:
https://www.weather.gov/media/lsx/DssPacket.pdf

The Area Forecast Discussion is available at:
https://forecast.weather.gov/
product.php?issuedby=LSX&product=AFD&site=lsx

.KEY MESSAGES...

- Isolated showers and thunderstorms are possible early this
  morning for parts of northeast MO/west-central IL with the
  strongest storms capable of strong wind gusts.

- Additional thunderstorm chances return early this week with a
  more widespread severe weather threat possible along a slow
  moving cold front Monday night into Tuesday.

NOTE: Starting May 29, 2026, this outlook product will be
discontinued. Please see the above products for more detailed
forecast information.

WFO LSX

The office that day

Everything else NWS St. Louis, MO issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 18, 6:12 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLSXAudrain, Marion, Pike, Ralls48 min
May 18, 6:18 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm Warning Considerable damage threatLSXAudrain, Boone, Callaway42 min
May 18, 6:41 AM CDTTornado WarningLSXPike, Ralls28 min
May 18, 7:21 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLSXLincoln, Pike39 min
May 18, 10:56 AM CDTAreal Flood AdvisoryLSXFranklin, Gasconade4 hr
May 18, 12:39 PM CDTAreal Flood AdvisoryLSXCrawford, Franklin, Washington7 hr
May 18, 1:22 PM CDTAreal Flood AdvisoryLSXSaint Louis, City of Saint Louis6 hr
May 18, 2:40 PM CDTAreal Flood AdvisoryLSXBoone, Callaway, Cole, Moniteau4 hr
May 18, 3:05 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningLSXCrawford, Franklin, Gasconade, Warren6 hr
May 18, 5:01 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningLSXFranklin, Gasconade, Warren3 hr
May 18, 5:06 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningLSXJefferson, Saint Louis, City of Saint Louis4 hr
May 18, 5:12 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningLSXSaint Charles, Saint Louis, City of Saint Louis3 hr
May 18, 7:37 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLSXCalhoun, Greene, Pike25 min
May 18, 11:25 AM CDTAreal Flood AdvisoryLSXFayette, Marion3 hr
May 18, 2:00 PM CDTAreal Flood AdvisoryLSXMadison, Monroe, Saint Clair3 hr
May 18, 2:11 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningLSXClinton, Fayette, Marion6 hr
May 18, 2:13 PM CDTAreal Flood AdvisoryLSXBond, Clinton, Fayette, Washington41 min
May 18, 2:54 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningLSXBond, Clinton, Fayette, Madison, Marion, Saint Clair and 1 more6 hr

Nearby

Flood Watches in Missouri, 2026Flood Watches in Illinois, 2026Every flood watch in 2026

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.