Flood, Alexander
- When
- December 18, 2:00 AM CST to December 22, 6:00 PM CST
- Where
- Alexander forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 37.192, -89.338 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Flooding in Illinois, December 18 to 24, 2001
The Ohio River crested one to two feet above flood stage at Shawneetown, Brookport, Grand Chain, and Cairo on December 20 or early on December 21. Minor flooding of bottomland and low-lying areas occurred.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 4 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
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 4
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 PAH wrote it up.
The Ohio River crested one to two feet above flood stage at Shawneetown, Brookport, Grand Chain, and Cairo on December 20 or early on December 21. Minor flooding of bottomland and low-lying areas occurred. This flood crest was the second of the month for Brookport and Grand Chain. This flooding was due to a series of heavy rainfall events that began in late November and ended around December 17. The heaviest rainfall event produced between 4 and 5 inches between the 15th and 17th.
What forecasters said that day
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Paducah, KY wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Dec 18, 1:46 AM CST, 14 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Dec 18, 1:46 AM CST, 14 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY 146 AM CST TUE DEC 18 2001 CURRENT PACKAGE IN PRETTY GOOD SHAPE. WILL MAKE A FEW TWEAKS HERE AND THERE...OTHERWISE NO CHANGES PLANNED. LATEST SATELLITE PIX SHOWED THE LAST OF THE WRAP-AROUND CLOUDS ABOUT TO EXIT THE EXTREME NE CORNER OF THE CWA. NEAR ZONAL FLOW ALOFT AND SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE TO OUR SOUTH WILL KEEP THE AREA DRY AND MOSTLY CLOUD FREE TODAY AND INTO THE NIGHTTIME HOURS. BY LATE TONIGHT A SHORT WAVE WILL PUSH A COLD FRONT ACROSS THE CWA BUT MOISTURE IS VERY LIMITED. AVN MODEL TRIES TO CRANK OUT A FEW SPRINKLES WITH THIS SYSTEM BUT SINCE THE ETA/NGM KEEP IT DRY...WILL KEEP FORECAST DRY. MOST OF THE CLOUDINESS ASSOCIATED WITH THIS SYSTEM WILL BE POST FRONTAL. AFTER THAT SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE AND SLOWLY RISING HEIGHTS ALOFT SHOULD KEEP US DRY THROUGH THE ENTIRE WEEK. ON SATURDAY THE FIRST SHOT OF ENERGY AND MOISTURE WILL EJECT FROM A STRONG SYSTEM FORECAST TO SPIN UP OVER THE CENTRAL ROCKIES. ON SUNDAY THIS HUGE SYSTEM LIFTS NE ACROSS THE PLAINS AND EVENTUALLY PUSHES ITS WAY ACROSS THE AREA. AS A RESULT...RAIN IS A POSSIBILITY WITH THE FRONTAL PASSAGE ON SUNDAY AND THEN AGAIN ON MONDAY WITH THE WRAP-AROUND MOISTURE. THIS SYSTEM WILL PULL MUCH COLDER AIR IN BEHIND IT...SO WRAP-AROUND PRECIP ON MONDAY COULD END AS SNOW OR A MIXTURE OF RAIN AND SNOW...BUT WILL WAIT AND LOOK AT NEW EXTENDED GUIDANCE BEFORE MAKING A DECISION. SO FAR TONIGHT DENSE FOG HAS NOT DEVELOPED...BUT WOULD NOT BE SURPRISED IF WE GET HOSED EVERYWHERE WITHIN THE NEXT COUPLE OF HOURS. THE WINDS HAVE STAYED UP JUST ENOUGH TO KEEP THE LOWER LEVELS MIXED. AS THE SURFACE LOW CONTINUES TO PULL AWAY AND WINDS SUBSIDE...WE COULD VERY WELL DECOUPLE AND GO DOWN FOR THE COUNT. WILL WAIT AND SEE WHAT HAPPENS AND WORD THE 1ST PERIOD ZONES ACCORDINGLY. .PAH...NONE. PACKETT
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
4 flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Flood, Gallatin
- When
- December 18, 8:00 AM CST to December 24, 8:00 AM CST
- Where
- Gallatin forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 37.763, -88.230 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Flood, Pulaski
- When
- December 18, 8:00 AM CST to December 22, 2:00 PM CST
- Where
- Pulaski forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 37.223, -89.127 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Flood, Massac
- When
- December 18, 10:00 AM CST to December 21, 10:00 AM CST
- Where
- Massac forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 37.219, -88.708 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
What these are
- Flood
- Flooding that develops more slowly than a flash flood: rivers leaving their banks, or water standing over land for an extended time.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Flooding in Indiana, December 18 to 27, 2001
- Dense Fog in Kentucky, December 18, 2001
- Dense Fog in California, December 18 to 19, 2001
- Heavy Snow in Idaho, December 18 to 19, 2001
- Dense Fog in California, December 18, 2001
- Heavy Snow in Idaho, December 18 to 19, 2001
- Heavy Snow in Alaska, December 18, 2001
- Flood in Indiana, December 18 to 31, 2001
- High Wind in North Carolina, December 18, 2001
- Marine Thunderstorm Wind in North Atlantic Coastal Waters, December 18, 2001
- High Wind in New Jersey, December 18, 2001
- Marine Thunderstorm Wind in North Atlantic Coastal Waters, December 18, 2001
More
Every storm in Illinois in 2001Every state in 2001This day in weather historyWarnings in Illinois, December 2001
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: 5273516, 5273517, 5273519, 5273518.