Illinois, 1998

Tornadoes in Illinois, April 15, 1998

April 15, 1998 · NWS LSX · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

A small tornado initially touched down southeast of Waterloo and then moved northeast leaving an intermittent damage path, which primarily consisted of downed trees. A parked ambulance was overturned at the intersection of Highways 159 and 156 near Hecker.

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
$10,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
2

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.

What happened

The episode as NWS LSX wrote it up.

A small tornado initially touched down southeast of Waterloo and then moved northeast leaving an intermittent damage path, which primarily consisted of downed trees. A parked ambulance was overturned at the intersection of Highways 159 and 156 near Hecker. The tornado moved along the Kaskaskia River downing trees finally dissipating near Fayettville.

The radar

The St Louis radar (KLSX), 72 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 00:02 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

2 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.

Tornado, Monroe

When
April 15, 6:05 PM CST to 6:15 PM CST
Where
Monroe County, Waterloo to 6 mi of Hecker
Rating
F0
Path length
6 mi
Path width
25 yd
Property damage
$10,000
Coordinates
38.270, -90.070

Tornado, St. Clair

When
April 15, 6:15 PM CST to 6:25 PM CST
Where
St. Clair County, Smithton to 7 mi of Fayetteville
Rating
F0
Path length
9 mi
Path width
50 yd
Coordinates
38.320, -89.980

What these are

Tornado
A violently rotating column of air in contact with the ground and extending from a thunderstorm, filed with its path, width and Fujita or Enhanced Fujita rating from the damage survey.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Illinois in 1998Every state in 1998This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Illinois, 1998Warnings in Illinois, April 1998

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: 5636730, 5636731.