Illinois, 2000

Flash Flooding in Illinois, October 4 to 5, 2000

October 4 to 5, 2000 · NWS ILX · 5 events in 5 counties and zones

A stationary boundary just south of the area provided a focus for widespread thunderstorms producing heavy rainfall. Radar estimates and surface reports indicated anywhere from 2 to over 6 inches of rain falling during the evening and overnight hours across the area.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 5 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. 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

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
$300,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
5

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 ILX wrote it up.

A stationary boundary just south of the area provided a focus for widespread thunderstorms producing heavy rainfall. Radar estimates and surface reports indicated anywhere from 2 to over 6 inches of rain falling during the evening and overnight hours across the area. Numerous roads were reported to have either ponding of water on them, or were completely covered in water for a period of time. The following reports were from Cumberland county, the hardest hit area in this event. North of Greenup, in Union township, a road around a bridge was washed out, causing over $90,000 in damage. One car had to be pulled out of high water along County Highway 6. The vehicle was three-quarters submerged, but there were no injuries. In Sumpter township, the flood water scoured a hole along a culvert and under a roadway, which caved in when a truck passed over it. There were no injuries with this as well and no evacuations were needed.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

5 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flash Flood, Shelby

When
October 4, 9:30 PM CST to October 5, 3:00 AM CST
Where
Shelby County, Countywide
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
39.391, -88.805 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flash Flood, Clark

When
October 4, 9:55 PM CST to October 5, 5:00 AM CST
Where
Clark County, Countywide
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
39.334, -87.788 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flash Flood, Cumberland

When
October 4, 9:55 PM CST to October 5, 8:00 PM CST
Where
Cumberland County, Countywide
Property damage
$300,000
Reported by
DEPT OF HIGHWAYS
Coordinates
39.273, -88.240 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flash Flood, Christian

When
October 5, 1:20 AM CST to 4:30 AM CST
Where
Christian County, Countywide
Reported by
EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates
39.546, -89.277 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flash Flood, Coles

When
October 5, 3:30 AM CST to 5:30 AM CST
Where
Coles County, Countywide
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
39.520, -88.222 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Flash Flood
Flooding that begins within six hours of the rain that causes it, or of a dam or levee failure or ice jam release, often with deadly speed.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Illinois in 2000Every state in 2000This day in weather historyWarnings in Illinois, October 2000

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: 5174780, 5174779, 5174781, 5174782, 5174783.