Isolated severe wind gusts occurred with storms along and ahead of a weak surface cold front that moved southeast from Missouri to the Lower Ohio Valley. The storms formed during the heat and humidity of the afternoon, organizing into a bow-shaped structure that produced strong winds.
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 PAH wrote it up.
Isolated severe wind gusts occurred with storms along and ahead of a weak surface cold front that moved southeast from Missouri to the Lower Ohio Valley. The storms formed during the heat and humidity of the afternoon, organizing into a bow-shaped structure that produced strong winds.
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 Jul 8, 12:56 PM CST, 4 hours 39 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY 156 PM CDT TUE JUL 8 2008 .DISCUSSION... BIGGEST CHALLENGES WITH THIS PACKAGES WILL BE TIMING AND COVERAGE OF POPS ALMOST EVERY FORECAST PERIOD. A FRONTAL BOUNDARY WILL SAG INTO THE NORTHWEST SECTIONS OF THE CWA BY 12Z WEDNESDAY. IN THE MEANTIME...THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE JUST ABOUT ANYWHERE ACROS THE CWA IN THE UNSTABLE AND VERY MOIST AIRMASS. STORMS ARE NOT EXPECTED TO BECOME SEVERE...HOWEVER A FEW COULD PULSE UPWARD TO NEAR SEVERE LEVELS. POP CHANCES WILL INCREASE FROM THE NORTH TONIGHT AS THE BOUNDARY APPROACHES. BEST CHANCE FOR PRECIP WILL BE WEDNESDAY AS THE BOUNDARY SLIDES SOUTHWARD ACROSS THE CWA. MODELS SIMILAR IN THEIR HANDLING OF THE PROGRESS OF THIS BOUNDARY AND ASSOCIATED PRECIP THROUGH 00Z THURSDAY. BEYOND THAT THE GFS APPEARS A BIT TOO AGRESSIVE...SO LEANED MORE TOWARD THE NAM/SREF. WEDNESDAY NIGHT INTO THURSDAY POPS SHOULD DECREASE FROM THE NORTH AS THE BOUNDARY SLIDES JUST SOUTH OF OUR CWA. THE AGRESSIVE GFS SHOWS NO POPS FOR THESE TWO PERIODS...BUT THE ECMWF/NAM/SREF KEEP SCHC-CHC POPS OVER THE SOUTHERN HALF OF THE CWA...SO LEANED THAT WAY. AS THE BOUNDARY WASHES OUT...WEAK HIGH PRESSURE SHOULD KEEP THE REGION DRY AND SLIGHTLY COOLER/DRIER THURSDAY NIGHT...FRIDAY...AND FRIDAY NIGHT. MODELS DRAG A WEAK FROPA INTO THE QUAD STATE REGION ON SATURDAY... SO BUMPED UP POPS TO SCHC. MODELS ARE ALSO IN DECENT AGREEMENT BY HANGING UP THIS BOUNDARY OVER OUR CWA ALONG WITH WEST NORTHWEST FLOW ALOFT...PLENTY OF MOISTURE AND INSTABILITY...AND NO APPRECIABLE CAPPING INVERSION ...SO WILL ALSO INCREASE POPS TO SCHC FOR THE ENTIRE AREA FOR SATURDAY NIGHT AND SUNDAY. MEXMOS AND HPC GUIDANCE POPS ALSO SUPPORT THESE CHANGES. SUNDAY NIGHT EVEN THOUGH HIGH PRESSURE PUSHES THE FRONT TO NEAR THE KY/TN BORDER...THE WESTERN PORTIONS OF THE BOUNDARY HANG UP OVER OUR SEMO COUNTIES AS A SYSTEM BEGINS TO DEVELOP OVER THE CENTRAL PLAINS. THIS SCENARIO CONTINUES ON MONDAY SO WILL INTRODUCE A SCHC POP OVER OUR SEMO COUNTIES. THE GFS IS A BIT MORE AGRESSIVE BRINGING THIS STORM SYSTEM OUT OF THE PLAINS...BUT IT INITIALLY LOOKS A BIT OVERDONE...SO FOR NOW WILL OPT FOR THE SLOWER ECMWF SOLUTION. AS THIS SYSTEM SLOWLY BEGINS TO MOVE ACROSS THE REGION MONDAY NIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY NIGHT...HAVE ALSO INTRODUCED SCHC POPS. AGAIN THE GFS IS MORE AGRESSIVE WITH THE PROGRESS OF THIS SYSTEM...SO WENT WITH A GFS/ECMWF COMPROMISE. && .AVIATION... SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS THIS AFTERNOON WILL GRADUALLY DIMINISH WITH LOSS OF DAYTIME HEATING AFTER SUNSET. ISOLATED TO SCATTERED SHOWERS ARE EXPECTED THROUGH THE NIGHT AS A WEAK COLD FRONT APPROACHES FROM THE NORTHWEST. DUE TO WEAK INSTABILITY...COVERAGE AND INTENSITY OF PRECIPITATION IS EXPECTED TO BE FAIRLY LOW. THE FRONT WILL ARRIVE AROUND 12Z. MORE WIDESPREAD SHOWERS AND STORMS ARE EXPECTED ALONG AND IMMEDIATELY BEHIND THE FRONT WEDNESDAY MORNING. WINDS WILL SHIFT INTO THE NORTHWEST AS THE FRONT PASSES. && .PAH WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... KY...NONE. MO...NONE. IL...NONE. IN...NONE. && PUBLIC.......JP AVIATION.....MY
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY 341 PM CDT TUE JUL 8 2008 ILZ075>078-080>094-INZ081-082-085>088-KYZ001>022-MOZ076-086-087- 100-107>112-114-091145- JEFFERSON-WAYNE IL-EDWARDS-WABASH-PERRY IL-FRANKLIN-HAMILTON- WHITE-JACKSON-WILLIAMSON-SALINE-GALLATIN-UNION IL-JOHNSON-POPE- HARDIN-ALEXANDER-PULASKI-MASSAC-GIBSON-PIKE-POSEY-VANDERBURGH- WARRICK-SPENCER-FULTON-HICKMAN-CARLISLE-BALLARD-MCCRACKEN-GRAVES- LIVINGSTON-MARSHALL-CALLOWAY-CRITTENDEN-LYON-TRIGG-CALDWELL- UNION KY-WEBSTER-HOPKINS-CHRISTIAN-HENDERSON-DAVIESS-MCLEAN- MUHLENBERG-TODD-PERRY MO-BOLLINGER-CAPE GIRARDEAU-WAYNE MO-CARTER- RIPLEY-BUTLER-STODDARD-SCOTT-MISSISSIPPI-NEW MADRID- 341 PM CDT TUE JUL 8 2008 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHERN ILLINOIS...SOUTHWEST INDIANA...WESTERN KENTUCKY AND SOUTHEAST MISSOURI. .DAY ONE...LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND OVERNIGHT AS A FRONTAL BOUNDARY DROPS SLOWLY SOUTHWARD TOWARD THE QUAD STATE REGION. A FEW OF THE STORMS MAY APPROACH SEVERE LEVELS PRODUCING MARGINALLY SEVERE HAIL AND DAMAGING WIND GUSTS. LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL WILL ALSO BE A CONCERN. LONG TERM RIVER FLOODING WILL CONTINUE ON THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER NEAR CAPE GIRARDEAU AND THEBES...AND ON THE BIG MUDDY RIVER NEAR MURPHYSBORO. PLEASE REFER TO THE LATEST FLOOD WARNINGS AND STATEMENTS FOR FURTHER DETAILS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY NUMEROUS THUNDERSTORMS ARE FORECAST THROUGHOUT THE AREA WEDNESDAY. A FEW OF THESE STORMS MAY BRIEFLY APPROACH SEVERE LEVELS...PRODUCING MARGINALLY SEVERE HAIL AND WIND GUSTS. HEAVY RAINFALL MAY BECOME MORE OF A WIDESPREAD PROBLEM THROUGH THE DAY. A CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE MAINLY IN THE SOUTH WEDNESDAY NIGHT AND THURSDAY...AS A COLD FRONT LINGERS JUST SOUTH OF THE AREA. ON FRIDAY THE FRONT WILL MOVE BACK NORTH THROUGH THE AREA...RESULTING IN A SMALL CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE WESTERN HALF OF THE AREA. SEVERE WEATHER IS NOT EXPECTED WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH FRIDAY. THUNDERSTORMS ARE ALSO POSSIBLE FROM NEXT SATURDAY THROUGH TUESDAY AS THE NEXT FRONTAL SYSTEM MOVES INTO THE REGION. HEAT INDEX VALUES WILL TOP OUT AROUND 100 DEGREES THROUGHOUT THE QUAD STATE EACH AFTERNOON FROM SATURDAY THROUGH MONDAY. LONG TERM RIVER FLOODING WILL CONTINUE ON THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER NEAR CAPE GIRARDEAU AND THEBES...AND ON THE BIG MUDDY RIVER NEAR MURPHYSBORO. PLEASE REFER TO THE LATEST FLOOD WARNINGS AND STATEMENTS FOR FURTHER DETAILS. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... DUE TO THE BRIEF NATURE OF ANY SEVERE STORMS THAT MAY DEVELOP THROUGH WEDNESDAY...SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS UNLIKELY AT THIS TIME. DRS/JAP
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY
407 PM CDT TUE JUL 08 2008
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0403 PM TSTM WND DMG TAMMS 37.24N 89.27W
07/08/2008 ALEXANDER IL LAW ENFORCEMENT
A TREE HAS FALLEN ON A VEHICLE NEAR THE TAMMS
CORRECTIONAL CENTER.
&&
WIELGOSPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY
442 PM CDT TUE JUL 08 2008
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0435 PM TSTM WND GST GRAHMVILLE 37.15N 88.84W
07/08/2008 E60.00 MPH MCCRACKEN KY TRAINED SPOTTER
REPORTS NEAR GRAHAMVILLE OF 50-60 MPH WINDS. SOME DEBRIS
IN THE ROAD BEING REPORTED IN THE WEST PART OF THE
COUNTY...INCLUDING SMALL LIMBS.
&&
WIELGOSPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY
453 PM CDT TUE JUL 08 2008
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0436 PM TSTM WND DMG PADUCAH 37.07N 88.64W
07/08/2008 MCCRACKEN KY TRAINED SPOTTER
TREE DOWN AT 29TH AND JEFFERSON AND ANOTHER TREE DOWN ON
HIGHWAY 45 SOUTH...NEAR LONE OAK.
&&
WIELGOSPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY
526 PM CDT TUE JUL 08 2008
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0445 PM TSTM WND GST PADUCAH 37.07N 88.64W
07/08/2008 E50 MPH MCCRACKEN KY TRAINED SPOTTER
50 MPH WINDS AT WPSD TV 6...RELAYED BY A SPOTTER
&&
WIELGOSPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY
530 PM CDT TUE JUL 08 2008
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0445 PM TSTM WND GST PADUCAH 37.07N 88.64W
07/08/2008 E60.00 MPH MCCRACKEN KY NWS EMPLOYEE
OFF DUTY NWS EMPLOYEE REPORTED 60 TO 65 MPH WINDS AT HOME
NEAR LOURDES HOSPITAL.
&&
WIELGOSPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY
532 PM CDT TUE JUL 08 2008
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0500 PM TSTM WND DMG MAYFIELD 36.74N 88.65W
07/08/2008 GRAVES KY TRAINED SPOTTER
TREES AND POWERLINES DOWN AROUND MAYFIELD WITH POWER
OUTAGES. REPORT FROM WPSD TV 6...RELAYED BY A SPOTTER.
&&
WIELGOSThe Evansville,IN radar (KVWX), 37 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 23:35 UTC.
2 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
A few tree limbs were blown down. Wind speeds were estimated near 60 mph.
A mobile spotter measured a gust to 64 mph.
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: 113475, 113455.