Severe thunderstorms developed ahead of a strong cold front, triggering numerous showers and thunderstorms. A number of tornadoes were reported as well as damaging winds and large hail.
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 LSX wrote it up.
Severe thunderstorms developed ahead of a strong cold front, triggering numerous showers and thunderstorms. A number of tornadoes were reported as well as damaging winds and large hail.
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 St. Louis, MO wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Dec 31, 6:20 AM CST, 4 hours 32 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED AVIATION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ST LOUIS MO 620 AM CST FRI DEC 31 2010 .DISCUSSION... /211 AM CST FRI DEC 31 2010/ MAIN CONCERN WILL BE THUNDERSTORMS TODAY AND THE POTENTIAL FOR A FEW SEVERE STORMS. LATEST RUNS OF THE RUC HAVE BEEN CONSISTENT IN SHIFTING THE MAXIMUM OF 925-850MB MOISTURE CONVERGENCE FROM CNTRL/ NERN MO INTO W CNTRL IL BY 12Z ON THE NOSE OF THE 60KT LOW LEVEL JET. THE RUC SHOWS THE BULK OF THIS FORCING SHIFTING NORTHEAST OF THE CWA BY 15Z. THE NAM/GFS ARE IN RELATIVELY GOOD AGREEMENT THEREAFTER THAT THERE WILL BE A MODEST INCREASE IN LARGE SCALE ASCENT AS THE CLOSED 500MB LOW MOVES NEWD ACROSS THE CNTRL PLAINS. THE VERTICAL MOTION WILL BECOME NEUTRAL OR DOWNWARD OVER THE CWA LATER THIS AFTERNOON AT THE SAME TIME THE SFC COLD FRONT MOVES ACROSS THE CWA. SO WHILE THERE MAY BE SOME MODEST RECOVERY AHEAD OF THE FRONT...FORECAST SOUNDINGS ARE SHOWING A MID LEVEL INVERSION SETTING UP THAT WOULD ALSO ACT TO SUPPRESS ADDITIONAL STORM DEVELOPMENT. THIS GOES ALONG WITH THE RECENT HRRR SIMULATED REFLECTIVITY FORECASTS WHICH SHOWS THE FIRST CLUSTER EXITING THE NERN CWA BY MID MORNING...A SECOND CLUSTER MOVING ACROSS SERN MO AT MID-MORNING FOLLOWED BY WEAK DISCRETE CELLS DEVELOPING ALONG THE COLD FRONT THIS AFTERNOON. WHILE IT IS DIFFICULT TO DETERMINE HOW THE THERMODYNAMIC PROFILES WILL EVOLVE TODAY...ENVIRONMENTAL SHEAR WILL BE MORE THAN SUFFICIENT FOR A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS. STORMS WILL QUICKLY EXIT THE EASTERN CWA THIS EVENING AS THE COLD FRONT PUSHES EAST OF THE AREA. STILL NOT SEEING A TRANSITION TO SNOW AT THIS TIME AS THE ATMOSPHERE WILL LIKELY DRY OUT BEFORE IT COOLS ENOUGH FOR SNOW. ALSO NOT SEEING ANY OBVIOUS ADDITIONAL CHANCES FOR PRECIPITATION THROUGH EARLY NEXT WEEK AS THE UPPER FLOW BECOMES ZONAL WITH ONLY WEAK SHORTWAVES MOVING THROUGH A DRY ATMOSPHERE. BRITT && .AVIATION... /620 AM CST FRI DEC 31 2010/ SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS AFFECTING KUIN AND KCOU...WHILE ST. LOUIS METRO AREA TO SEE A BREAK IN THE PCPN THIS MORNING. CIGS TO BE BOUNCING BETWEEN VFR AND MVFR FOR AN HOUR OR TWO. OTHERWISE...CIGS TO REMAIN MVFR TIL COLD FRONT MOVES THROUGH. FRONT TO MOVE THROUGH KCOU BY 22Z...KUIN...KSUS AND KSTL BY 01Z TONIGHT. STILL NOT SURE ON EXACT TIMING OF PCPN AHEAD OF FRONTAL BOUNDARY...SO JUST HAVE VCNTY TS MENTION AT KUIN...KSUS AND KSTL BEGINNING AROUND 20Z. EXPECT GUSTY SOUTH WINDS TODAY AHEAD OF FRONT...THEN VEER TO THE WEST BEHIND THE FRONT. SPECIFICS FOR KSTL...MVFR CIGS AND GUSTY SOUTH WINDS TO PERSIST AT KSTL THROUGH THE MORNING HOURS TODAY...BEFORE NEW STORMS FIRE AHEAD OF A STRONG COLD FRONT THIS AFTERNOON. HAVE VCNTY TS MENTION BY 20Z...WITH FRONT MOVING THROUGH AROUND 01Z...WITH CIGS SCATTERING OUT. BYRD && .LSX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... MO...NONE. IL...NONE. && WFO LSX
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ST LOUIS MO 818 AM CST FRI DEC 31 2010 ILZ058>060-064-065-069-070-074-079-095>102-MOZ018-019-026-027- 034>036-041-042-047>052-059>065-072>075-084-085-099-011145- GREENE IL-MACOUPIN IL-MONTGOMERY IL-BOND IL-FAYETTE IL-CLINTON IL- MARION IL-WASHINGTON IL-RANDOLPH IL-ADAMS IL-BROWN IL-PIKE IL- CALHOUN IL-JERSEY IL-MADISON IL-ST. CLAIR IL-MONROE IL-KNOX MO- LEWIS MO-SHELBY MO-MARION MO-MONROE MO-RALLS MO-PIKE MO-BOONE MO- AUDRAIN MO-MONITEAU MO-COLE MO-OSAGE MO-CALLAWAY MO-MONTGOMERY MO- LINCOLN MO-GASCONADE MO-WARREN MO-ST. CHARLES MO-FRANKLIN MO- ST. LOUIS MO-ST. LOUIS CITY MO-JEFFERSON MO-CRAWFORD MO- WASHINGTON MO-ST. FRANCOIS MO-STE. GENEVIEVE MO-IRON MO- MADISON MO-REYNOLDS MO- 818 AM CST FRI DEC 31 2010 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF EASTERN AND CENTRAL MISSOURI AS WELL AS WEST CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST ILLINOIS. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED OVER THE REGION TODAY. A FEW OF THEM WILL BE SEVERE...CAPABLE OF PRODUCING TORNADOES...LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WIND GUSTS IN EXCESS OF 60 MPH. SOUTHWESTERLY WINDS MAY GUST OVER 35 MPH OUTSIDE OF THUNDERSTORMS TODAY IN CENTRAL MISSOURI. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY WESTERLY WINDS MAY GUST TO 35 MPH ON SATURDAY OVER NORTHEAST MISSOURI AND WEST CENTRAL ILLINOIS. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS LIKELY. BRITT
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ST LOUIS MO
1000 AM CST FRI DEC 31 2010
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0957 AM HAIL FULTON 38.85N 91.95W
12/31/2010 M0.25 INCH CALLAWAY MO TRAINED SPOTTER
&&
FGLASSPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ST LOUIS MO
1039 AM CST FRI DEC 31 2010
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
1030 AM HAIL BOWLING GREEN 39.34N 91.20W
12/31/2010 M1.00 INCH PIKE MO TRAINED SPOTTER
&&
FGLASSPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ST LOUIS MO
1042 AM CST FRI DEC 31 2010
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
1038 AM HAIL BOWLING GREEN 39.34N 91.20W
12/31/2010 M1.00 INCH PIKE MO TRAINED SPOTTER
DIME TO QUARTER SIZE HAIL MIX.
&&
DYEPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ST LOUIS MO
1047 AM CST FRI DEC 31 2010
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
1042 AM HAIL 5 WSW STEELVILLE 37.94N 91.44W
12/31/2010 M0.25 INCH CRAWFORD MO TRAINED SPOTTER
&&
BROWNINGThe St Louis radar (KLSX), 92 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 16:52 UTC.
4 thunderstorm wind, 4 hail, 3 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.
Thunderstorm winds blew down a large tree just north of Martinsburg.
A tornado touched down three miles north northwest of Mozier in the Calhoun County conservation area called Rip Rap Landing. It crossed Illinois Route 96 near West Panther Creek Road and then traveled northeast crossing Hootowl Hollow Road before dissipating just west of Hillcrest. Damage was confined to uprooted trees.
Thunderstorm winds blew down several power poles around town.
Thunderstorm winds blew some siding off of a house and outbuildings.
A tornado touched down just west of Emerald Mound Grange Road, south of Midgley Neiss Road. It traveled to the northeast crossing Emerald Mound Grange Road, then lifted a short time later. The tornado damaged a few outbuildings and trees on a farmstead on the west side of the road.
A tornado touched down on the north side of Greenville near the intersection of North Hena Street and North Dewey Street. An agricultural building at the high school sustained roof damage with some additional minor roof and tree damage noticed at an adjacent house. The tornado then moved northeast causing significant damage to a large tree on the north side of Illinois Route 140. Minor roof and siding damage was noted on several houses on Cloverfield Lane and North Idler Lane. The tornado continued northeast producing additional minor roof and tree damage on Country Club and Woburn Roads before dissipating.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Illinois in 2010Every state in 2010This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Illinois, 2010Warnings in Illinois, December 2010
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: 273865, 273866, 273733, 274600, 275093, 274602, 274601, 275094, 275095, 272958, 273739.