Damaging Wind in Illinois, October 24, 2001

Name: Damaging Wind in Illinois, October 24, 2001
Start: 2001-10-24T14:20
End: 2001-10-24T14:30
Location: Illinois

October 24, 2001 · NWS PAH · 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: 1
Property damage: $50,000
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.

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 Oct 24, 12:50 PM CST, 1 hour 30 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Oct 24, 12:50 PM CST, 1 hour 30 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY
150 PM CDT WED OCT 24 2001

BIGGEST CHALLENGE IS SEVERE WEATHER POTENTIAL THROUGH THIS EVENING.

LATEST SURFACE ANALYSIS SHOWED A LOW OVER THE WESTERN GREAT LAKES
REGION. A STRONG COLD FRONT DROPPED SOUTH-SOUTHWEST FROM THE LOW
ACROSS NORTH CENTRAL ILLINOIS...WEST CENTRAL ILLINOIS...SOUTHWEST
MISSOURI...NORTHWEST ARKANSAS...INTO NORTH CENTRAL TEXAS.
ACCOMPANYING THE FRONT IS A VIGOROUS SHORT WAVE. THIS SYSTEM WILL
PLOW ACROSS OUR CWA THIS AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING. AHEAD OF THE
FRONT THE ATMOSPHERE IS VERY UNSTABLE (MODIFIED BNA SOUNDING SHOWED
: K INDEX 36...LI -9...SWEAT 422...CAPE 2935). WIND SHEAR PROFILES
IN THE LOWEST LEVELS INDICATE SUFFICIENT CLOCKWISE TURNING TO
GENERATE ROTATING UPDRAFTS IN THE STRONGER STORMS. STRONG WINDS
THROUGH THE ENTIRE COLUMN AND SWIFT MOVEMENT OF THE STORMS
THEMSELVES WILL MAKE STRONG DOWNBURSTS A GOOD POSSIBILITY AS WELL.
THE FRONT WILL CLEAR THE EASTERN PART OF OUR CWA BY LATE AFTERNOON.
IN THE WAKE OF THIS SYSTEM HIGH PRESSURE AT THE SURFACE AND
INCREASING HEIGHTS ALOFT SHOULD KEEP OUR REGION DRY THROUGH NEXT
WEDNESDAY.  TEMPERATURES...HOWEVER WILL BE COOLER...WITH A
REINFORCING SHOT OF EVEN COOLER AIR OVERSPREADING THE REGION ON
FRIDAY.

.PAH...TORNADO WATCHES 797 & 798 IN EFFECT FOR THE ENTIRE CWA
THROUGH 7 PM.

JAP

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Oct 24, 11:16 AM CST, 3 hours 4 minutes before

ILZ075>078-080>087-INZ081-082-085>088-KYZ014-018-019-MOZ076-250000-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY
1216 PM CDT WED OCT 24 2001

...TORNADO WATCH 797 IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM CDT...

THE TORNADO WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR MUCH OF SOUTHERN ILLINOIS...
ALL OF SOUTHWEST INDIANA...A SMALL PART OF WESTERN KENTUCKY...AND
A SMALL PART OF SOUTHEAST MISSOURI. THE WATCH INCLUDES AREAS
GENERALLY ALONG AND NORTH OF A LINE FROM PERRYVILLE MISSOURI TO
OWENSBORO KENTUCKY.

COUNTIES INCLUDED IN THE WATCH...

IN KENTUCKY...UNION...HENDERSON...AND DAVIESS.

IN SOUTHERN ILLINOIS...
JACKSON...WILLIAMSON...SALINE...PERRY...FRANKLIN...HAMILTON...
EDWARDS...WABASH...WHITE...JEFFERSON...WAYNE...AND GALLATIN.

IN SOUTHWEST INDIANA...GIBSON...PIKE...POSEY...VANDERBURGH...WARRICK
AND SPENCER.

IN SOUTHEAST MISSOURI...PERRY.

A STRONG COLD FRONT AND ASSOCIATED UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE WILL
PLOW ACROSS THE REGION TODAY. AHEAD OF THE FRONT THE AIRMASS IS
EXTREMELY UNSTABLE AND WIND SHEAR IN THE LOWER LEVELS IS FAVORABLE
FOR THE FORMATION OF TORNADIC THUNDERSTORMS. CONDITIONS ARE ALSO
FAVORABLE FOR INTENSE MICROBURSTS AND LARGE HAIL.

PERSONS IN THE WATCH AREA SHOULD BE ALERT FOR RAPIDLY CHANGING
WEATHER CONDITIONS AND DEVELOP A SAFETY PLAN IF SEVERE WEATHER
THREATENS. THE ENTIRE REGION IS IN A HIGH RISK AREA FOR SEVERE
THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT TODAY...SO SIMILAR THUNDERSTORM AND
TORNADIC DEVELOPMENT IS A GOOD BET ACROSS THE REMAINDER OF SOUTHERN
ILLINOIS...WESTERN KENTUCKY...AND SOUTHEAST MISSOURI. THE THREAT WILL
DIMINISH FROM WEST TO EAST WITH THE PASSAGE OF THE FRONT.

JAP

Special weather statement, Oct 24, 12:45 PM CST, 1 hour 35 minutes before

ILZ088>094-KYZ001>013-015>017-020>022-MOZ086-087-100-107>112-114-
250000-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY
145 PM CDT WED OCT 24 2001

...TORNADO WATCH 798 IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM CDT...

THE TORNADO WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR EXTREME SOUTHERN ILLINOIS...
THE REMAINDER OF WESTERN KENTUCKY...AND THE REMAINDER OF SOUTHEAST
MISSOURI. THE WATCH INCLUDES AREAS GENERALLY ALONG AND SOUTH OF A
LINE FROM PERRYVILLE MISSOURI TO OWENSBORO KENTUCKY.

COUNTIES INCLUDED IN THE WATCH...

IN KENTUCKY...BALLARD...CARLISLE...HICKMAN...FULTON...MCCRACKEN...
GRAVES...LIVINGSTON...MARSHALL...CALLOWAY...CRITTENDEN...LYON...
TRIGG...WEBSTER...CALDWELL...MCLEAN...HOPKINS...CHRISTIAN...
MUHLENBERG...AND TODD.

IN SOUTHERN ILLINOIS...UNION...JOHNSON...POPE...HARDIN...ALEXANDER...
PULASKI...AND MASSAC.

IN SOUTHEAST MISSOURI...BOLLINGER...CAPE GIRARDEAU...CARTER...
WAYNE...STODDARD...SCOTT...MISSISSIPPI...RIPLEY...BUTLER...AND NEW
MADRID.

A STRONG COLD FRONT AND ASSOCIATED UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE WILL
PLOW ACROSS THE REGION TODAY. AHEAD OF THE FRONT THE AIRMASS IS
EXTREMELY UNSTABLE AND WIND SHEAR IN THE LOWER LEVELS IS FAVORABLE
FOR THE FORMATION OF TORNADIC THUNDERSTORMS. CONDITIONS ARE ALSO
FAVORABLE FOR INTENSE MICROBURSTS AND LARGE HAIL.

PERSONS IN THE WATCH AREA SHOULD BE ALERT FOR RAPIDLY CHANGING
WEATHER CONDITIONS AND DEVELOP A SAFETY PLAN IF SEVERE WEATHER
THREATENS. THE THREAT WILL DIMINISH FROM WEST TO EAST WITH THE
PASSAGE OF THE FRONT.

JAP

Local storm report, Oct 24, 1:58 PM CST, 22 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY
258 PM CDT WED OCT 24 2001

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0255 PM    MARBLE HILL               MO   80 MPH WIND GUST
10/24/01   BOLLINGER                      REPORTED BY EOC

The radar

The Paducah radar (KPAH), 94 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 20:20 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Franklin

When: October 24, 2:20 PM CST to 2:30 PM CST
Where: Franklin County, Royalton
Injuries: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $50,000
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 37.867, -89.117

Widespread damage occurred across southern Franklin County, from Christopher, Zeigler, and Royalton east to West Frankfort. Numerous trees were blown down, some landing on houses and taking down power lines. In Mulkeytown, an elderly woman was trapped when a tree landed on her trailer home. She received broken ribs and was taken to a local hospital. Eight roads in the Zeigler area were blocked by fallen trees. A car port was destroyed in West Frankfort.

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 2001 Every state in 2001 This day in weather history Warnings in Illinois, October 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: 5270076.