Thunderstorms rapidly developed along a surface frontal boundary from central Illinois into southern Missouri. Extreme instability and favorable wind shear ahead of the activity promoted organized and isolated supercell storms.
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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.
Thunderstorms rapidly developed along a surface frontal boundary from central Illinois into southern Missouri. Extreme instability and favorable wind shear ahead of the activity promoted organized and isolated supercell storms.
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 Jun 8, 1:44 PM CST, 4 hours 48 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY 244 PM CDT MON JUN 8 2009 .DISCUSSION... MAIN ISSUE IS ATTEMPTING TO NAIL DOWN THE MOST LIKELY TIMES FOR CONVECTION. WEST TO SOUTHWEST FLOW IS EXPECTED THROUGH THIS WEEK...WHICH MEANS THE FRONT CURRENTLY MOVING THROUGH NORTHERN ILLINOIS AND MISSOURI WILL LINGER IN THE THE AREA FOR MOST OF THE WEEK. MODELS GENERALLY AGREE THAT SCATTERED CONVECTION IS POSSIBLE AT JUST ABOUT ANY TIME FOR THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS. SURFACE COLD FRONT SHOULD BE ALONG THE OHIO RIVER BY 18Z TUESDAY WHICH SHOULD SERVE AS A FOCUS FOR CONVECTION TOMORROW. BY 12Z WEDNESDAY THIS FRONT IS FORECAST TO MOVE BACK NORTH AS THE MAIN LOW BEGINS TO LIFT OUT FROM THE SOUTHWEST. ENSEMBLES FOCUS ON MAIN WAVES MOVING THROUGH THE AREA TUESDAY NIGHT INTO WEDNESDAY...MAINLY OVER THE NORTH. THE SECOND AND MORE IMPRESSIVE WAVE IS WEDNESDAY NIGHT INTO MID DAY THURSDAY. THE FRONT SHOULD MOVE SOUTH OF THE AREA BY 06Z FRIDAY...HOWEVER...THAT MAY NOT BE THE END AS THE NEXT LOW CENTER DEVELOPS OVER NORTHERN TEXAS. VERY DIFFICULT TO SAY WHERE THE FRONT WILL BE BY LATE IN THE WEEK. WAVES OF ENERGY MAY BRING INTERMITTENT CONVECTION BACK INTO THE AREA. MODELS SEEM TO HINT AT A DECENT WAVE MOVING ACROSS THE REGION ON SATURDAY. && .AVIATION... SHOWERS HAD DEPARTED ALL TAF SITES BY MID AFTERNOON. GIVEN AFTERNOON INSTABILITY...WILL KEEP A CHANCE FOR TSRA INTO AT LEAST THE EARLY EVENING THEREFORE HAVE MAINTAINED TEMPO GROUPS OF TSRA FOR ALL SITES INTO EARLY EVENING. OTHERWISE...VFR CONDITIONS WILL RULE FOR THE DURATION OF THIS TAF PERIOD...WITH SOME LIMITED MVFR DUE TO FOG TOWARD DAYBREAK. BEST CHANCE FOR TSRA ON TUE WILL BE KCGI AND KPAH BUT WILL BE TOWARD THE END OF THE TAF PERIOD AND MINIMAL EVEN THEN. && .PAH WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... KY...NONE. MO...NONE. IL...NONE. IN...NONE. && RLS/PS
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY 453 PM CDT MON JUN 8 2009 ILZ075>078-080>094-INZ081-082-085>088-KYZ001>022-MOZ076-086-087- 100-107>112-114-091000- 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- 453 PM CDT MON JUN 8 2009 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHERN ILLINOIS...SOUTHWEST INDIANA...WESTERN KENTUCKY AND SOUTHEAST MISSOURI. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT A LINE OF STRONG TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WILL MOVE EAST INTO SOUTHEAST MISSOURI AND MUCH OF SOUTHERN ILLINOIS THIS EVENING. LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS WILL BE THE PRIMARY CONCERNS...ALONG WITH LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL AND LIGHTNING. THE STORMS SHOULD BE WEAKENING AS THEY APPROACH THE WABASH AND OHIO RIVERS LATE THIS EVENING. SO LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL AND LIGHTNING WILL BE THE PRIMARY CONCERNS LATE THIS EVENING AND OVERNIGHT OVER THE EASTERN HALF OF THE AREA. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY. IT APPEARS THE MAIN HAZARDS WILL BE HEAVY RAIN AND LIGHTNING...HOWEVER EVEN THOUGH NO WIDESPREAD SEVERE WEATHER IS EXPECTED...ON BOTH TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY THERE IS A SLIGHT CHANCE THAT A FEW STORMS COULD BECOME SEVERE. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTERS ACROSS SOUTHEAST MISSOURI AND SOUTHERN ILLINOIS SHOULD BE PREPARED FOR ACTIVATION THIS EVENING. SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY ALSO BE REQUESTED THROUGHOUT THE AREA TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY. DRS
The Paducah radar (KPAH), 125 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 00:30 UTC.
4 hail, 3 thunderstorm wind, 3 tornado, 1 heavy rain. Local standard time, as filed.
The sheet metal roof was blown off a large shed or storage building. A large oak tree about 80 feet tall was uprooted and landed on a back porch, destroying it.
A small shed was overturned. Several trees and limbs were downed. Peak winds were estimated near 70 mph in this small tornado.
Downburst winds affected a swath of eastern and southern Perry County. The heart of the damage swath cut a path through the northeast and east sides of DuQuoin. The average path width was three-quarters of a mile. The damage path length was about six miles long. Many dozens to hundreds of trees were down on homes, vehicles, power lines, and other structures. Eight homes received major damage, and 82 others had minor damage. Nine vehicles were destroyed. A large portion of the metal roof was blown off a large industrial building. A semi trailer was overturned. Approximately 40 power poles were destroyed. Up to 1200 citizens were without power. There were two minor injuries due to falling debris. Peak winds were estimated near 75 mph.
This tornado downed hundreds of trees over rural Perry County. The tornado was embedded within an area of widespread straight-line wind damage. Peak winds were estimated near 95 mph close to the Franklin County border along Route 14. The average path width was about 200 yards. The tornado continued into western Franklin County.
Many trees and tree limbs were down in western Franklin County. At least one home received siding damage. Power lines were down. A spotter estimated peak winds near 65 mph southeast of Sesser.
The tornado continued into Franklin County from Perry County. Many trees were blown down. The tornado was embedded within a much broader area of straight-line wind damage to trees. Peak winds were estimated near 85 mph in this portion of the track.
Standing water was observed on state highways. Some back roads across the county were impassable due to flooding. City streets in Royalton were particularly affected by high water.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Illinois in 2009Every state in 2009This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Illinois, 2009Warnings in Illinois, June 2009
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: 171902, 171900, 171901, 171898, 171903, 171904, 171899, 171905, 171907, 171908, 174611.