The severe weather threat increased during the mid to late afternoon hours from central Illinois to central Indiana as a result of an upper level disturbance merging with wind flow into a low over Canada, daytime heating, a moist air mass in place at the surface, and cold air aloft. As the evening progressed a weak trough developed from northwest Ohio to central Indiana, just ahead of an outflow…
Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.
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 episode as NWS IND wrote it up.
The severe weather threat increased during the mid to late afternoon hours from central Illinois to central Indiana as a result of an upper level disturbance merging with wind flow into a low over Canada, daytime heating, a moist air mass in place at the surface, and cold air aloft. As the evening progressed a weak trough developed from northwest Ohio to central Indiana, just ahead of an outflow reinforced frontal zone. A severe thunderstorm watch was issued for the area at 430 PM EST. A combination of strong winds and heavy rainfall were the threats through the mid to late evening hours.
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 Indianapolis, IN wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 12, 4:31 PM EST, 1 hour 28 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE INDIANAPOLIS IN 531 PM EDT SAT JUL 12 2008 .AVIATION...DISCUSSION FOR 00Z TAFS COMPLEX OF TSRA ACRS IL WILL MOVE E ACROSS TAF SITES THRU 05Z OR SO. HAVE TRIED TO TIME BEST TIMES FOR TSRA AT THE SITES AND WILL AMEND AS NECESSARY...ESPECIALLY IF TSRA CONTINUE LONGER THAN EXPECTED AS SOME MODELS HINT AT. PLENTY OF MOISTURE IN ATMS COULD PRODUCE IFR OR LOWER VSBYS IN +RA...AND WIND GUSTS AOA 30KT POSSIBLE IN TSRA. AFTER PRECIP ENDS SHUD BE A PERIOD OF MVFR CIGS THRU 10-13Z OR SO. VFR CONDS THEN EXPECTED AS HIGH PRESSURE MOVES IN. && .DISCUSSION... FCST FOCUS ON PRECIP CHCS TONIGHT. NO MODEL IS HANDLING THE UPSTREAM MO WAVE AND ASSOCIATED PRECIP AS WELL AS HOPED. WILL USE SIGNALS OF PRECIP CHCS FROM MET/MAV MOS TONIGHT ALONG WITH ENVIRONMENTAL PARAMETERS SUCH AS PWS/INSTABILITY FOR AMOUNTS OF PRECIP. IN A NUTSHELL...COMPLEX SFC PATTERN HIGHLIGHTED BY A MYRIAD OF OUTFLOW BOUNDARIES IS LEADING TO LOW CONFIDENCE ON FOCUS FOR THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT THIS EVENING. FIRST GUESS IS ACROSS THE SOUTHERN THIRD NEAR THE OUTFLOW FROM EARLIER STORMS. HOWEVER...UPSTREAM MO WAVE AND CONVECTION WILL MOVE EAST WITHIN THE 850-300MB FLOW INTO AN INCREASINGLY UNSTABLE IL ATMOSPHERE THIS EVENING...THUS IT WOULD APPEAR THAT THERE IS A RISK FOR CONVECTION ACROSS AT LEAST THE SOUTHERN HALF OF THE CWA THIS EVENING AND OVERNIGHT. EXCESSIVE RAIN POTENTIAL DOES EXIST DUE TO PWS AROUND 2 INCHES AND INCREASING INSTABILITY WHICH IS FCST TO PERSIST THROUGH 06Z TONIGHT. UPPER DIV WILL ALSO BE PRESENT AHEAD OF THE SFC BOUNDARY TONIGHT. ANOTHER CONCERN WAS THE WAVE WHICH IS EMBEDDED WITHIN THE SUBTROPICAL MONSOON PLUME WHICH WILL RIDE ALONG THE WESTERLIES ACROSS THE AREA TONIGHT. LIMITING FACTOR IS UNFAVORABLE ORIENTATION OF THE 850MB WINDS WHICH ALTHOUGH ARE FCST TO BACK THIS EVENING ARE STILL WNW IN WAKE OF THE MORNING WAVE. CURRENT THOUGHTS POINT TOWARD SOUTHERN MO/IL AND SOUTHERN IN FOR POTENTIAL FOR MORE WIDESPREAD CONVECTION THIS EVENING. AS MENTIONED...FORCING TONIGHT WILL ARISE FROM LIFT AHEAD OF THE WAVE ACROSS MO ALONG WITH DYNAMIC LIFT AHEAD OF THE 700-500MB UPPER TROUGH. HIGH PWS WITHIN SUBTROPICAL PLUME ALONG WITH UPPER DIV AND EXPECTED INSTABILITY SHOULD PROVIDE THE SETTING FOR THUNDERSTORMS WHICH ARE EFFICIENT AT PRODUCING HVY RAINS. MET/MAV MOS BOTH SHOW LIKELY OR CATEGORICAL POPS AND WILL LEAVE THE CURRENT FCST AS IS. SOME SVR RISK ALSO EXISTS AS INCREASING SHEAR INTERACTS WITH INCREASING INSTABILITY ACROSS THE REGION AHEAD OF THE MO WAVE THIS EVENING. LINGERING PRECIP SHOULD EXIT THE AREA BY MIDDAY SUNDAY AS DRIER AIR ARRIVES ON NW WINDS. MOS IS VERY CLOSE TO THE CURRENT FCST MAX TEMPS AND WILL LEAVE THE CURRENT NUMBERS AS IS. MONDAY AND BEYOND...CONDS STILL APPEAR DRY FOR MOST OF NEXT WEEK WITH THE NEXT FRONT EXPECTED TO TRY AND DROP INTO THE AREA NEXT FRI OR SAT. && .IND WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...NONE. && AVIATION...CS PUBLIC...CO
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE INDIANAPOLIS IN 355 PM EDT SAT JUL 12 2008 INZ021-028>031-035>049-051>057-060>065-067>072-132000- CARROLL-WARREN-TIPPECANOE-CLINTON-HOWARD-FOUNTAIN-MONTGOMERY- BOONE-TIPTON-HAMILTON-MADISON-DELAWARE-RANDOLPH-VERMILLION-PARKE- PUTNAM-HENDRICKS-MARION-HANCOCK-HENRY-VIGO-CLAY-OWEN-MORGAN- JOHNSON-SHELBY-RUSH-SULLIVAN-GREENE-MONROE-BROWN-BARTHOLOMEW- DECATUR-KNOX-DAVIESS-MARTIN-LAWRENCE-JACKSON-JENNINGS- 355 PM EDT SAT JUL 12 2008 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR CENTRAL INDIANA. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. THERE IS A SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE WEATHER THIS EVENING INTO TONIGHT. THE MAIN THREAT WOULD BE DAMAGING WINDS. THE MORE LIKELY THREAT TONIGHT WILL BE LOCALLY HEAVY RAINS AND FLASH FLOODING WITH ANY THUNDERSTORMS. THE STORMS WILL BE SLOW MOVING AND COULD PRODUCE AREAS OF 1 TO 2 INCHES OF RAIN WITH LOCALLY HIGHER AMOUNTS POSSIBLE. BEWARE OF CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING THIS EVENING AND TONIGHT. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY. THUNDERSTORMS WILL END BY EARLY SUNDAY MORNING...AND ARE NOT EXPECTED TO BE SEVERE...WITH LIGHTNING BEING THE PRIMARY THREAT. THERE IS A CHANCE FOR THUNDERSTORMS NEXT FRIDAY AND SATURDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NEEDED LATER THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. && MORE INFORMATION...ALONG WITH OTHER WEATHER...HYDROLOGICAL AND CLIMATE INFORMATION CAN BE FOUND...AT HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/IND (ALL LOWERCASE) CO
The Indianapolis radar (KIND), 63 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 22:56 UTC.
10 flash flood, 9 thunderstorm wind, 1 hail. Local standard time, as filed.
Thunderstorm winds blew down a tree and utility lines.
An area on the far east side of Terre Haute bound by Fruitridge to the west, United States Highway 40 to the north, State Route (SR) 46 to the east, and Poplar Street (SR 42) to the south had several limbs the size of a man's thigh and forearm (up to 25 feet long) with one large 2.5 foot diameter tree uprooted at Deming Park. All limbs and the tree were oriented west to east in this small area.
Thunderstorm winds blew trees and/or limbs down. Flash flooding was observed.
Heavy rain flooded the streets of Clay City to as much as 3 feet deep in some areas.
Flash flooding from heavy rain was reported east-southeast of Spencer.
Heavy thunderstorm rains produced flooding in the southeast section of Muncie.
Flooding from heavy thunderstorm rains was reported on US Highway 231.
Interstate 70 was closed near the Morgan county line for a short time after several cars hydroplanned on the highway.
Employees at Johnson County Memorial Hospital had to sandbag much of the first floor, including the emergency room waiting area, officials said; however, the ER was not affected.
Trees were blown down by thunderstorm winds, the largest of which was approximately 50 inches in circumference. Power was knocked out, thus utility lines were likely down as well.
Trees were blown down by thunderstorm winds.
Heavy thunderstorm rains flooded roads over a large portion of Morgan county, including Logap, State Route 39, Downey, Mahalasville, State Route 252, and State Route 42 over towards Cloverdale. Several roads were closed due to high water, including Interstate 70 and Everett Road.
Trees were blown down by thunderstorm winds over a large part of the county.
Thunderstorm winds blew down numerous trees countywide, including on Musgrave Road, Big Bend, Crooked Creek, and Abraham Road.
Highway 28 in Deerfield was flooded by heavy thunderstorm rains.
Heavy thunderstorm rains covered 750 West south of State Route 44 to a depth of 6 to 8 inches.
Thunderstorm winds blew down trees in West Moscow.
Flash flooding from heavy thunderstorm rains was reported to be flowing over the highway near the town of Lynn at a depth of one foot.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Indiana in 2008Every state in 2008This day in weather historyWarnings in Indiana, July 2008
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: 124488, 126875, 124489, 124490, 124491, 124946, 124493, 124494, 124947, 126843, 124848, 124852, 124856, 124865, 124869, 124873, 124942, 124943, 124944, 124945.