Damaging Wind in Illinois, August 24, 1997

Name: Damaging Wind in Illinois, August 24, 1997
Start: 1997-08-24T13:38
End: 1997-08-24T13:45
Location: Illinois

August 24, 1997 · NWS ILX · 1 event in 1 county or zone

1 thunderstorm wind, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.

Tornadoes
Tropical storms and surge
Floods
Wind
Hail
Winter weather
Heat and drought
Cold
Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $700,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 1

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

The radar

The Lincoln radar (KILX), 80 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 19:39 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Champaign

When: August 24, 1:38 PM CST to 1:45 PM CST
Where: Champaign County, Mahomet to Rising
Property damage: $700,000
Coordinates: 40.200, -88.400

Thunderstorm winds caused considerable damage as they moved through the western portions of Champaign County. Several trees were blown over and an air conditioning unit was blown off of its concrete base in Mahomet. Also, a trampoline was blown 30 feet in the air and landed in a nearby tree. Nearby at the Lake of the Woods park, 25 trees were seriously damaged and a small metal shelter was lifted up and moved about 100 feet. As the severe thunderstorms moved southeast, thunderstorm winds extensively damaged two empty grain bin silos in Rising. One 60-foot high corrugated steel bin was flattened and another nearby was left standing but crumpled. Also, a small screen bin, a grain dryer, spouts, and legs to the bins were twisted and torn. No injuries were reported and damage was estimated between $600,000 and $700,000 at the grain elevators in Rising. No estimate was available for the damage in Mahomet.

What these are

Thunderstorm Wind: Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Illinois in 1997 Every state in 1997 This day in weather history Warnings in Illinois, August 1997

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5614529.