A stationary frontal boundary extending across central Illinois served as the focus for thunderstorm development during the afternoon of June 3rd. Enough low-level wind shear existed in the environment near the front to produce rotation within many of the storms.
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 ILX wrote it up.
A stationary frontal boundary extending across central Illinois served as the focus for thunderstorm development during the afternoon of June 3rd. Enough low-level wind shear existed in the environment near the front to produce rotation within many of the storms. Numerous funnel clouds were sighted south of the I-72 corridor from south of Jacksonville northeastward to near Paris. One tornado briefly touched down in rural Christian County.
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 Lincoln, IL wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jun 3, 11:39 AM CST, 27 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LINCOLN IL 1239 PM CDT THU JUN 3 2010 .DISCUSSION... ISSUED 1025 AM CDT THU JUN 3 2010 UPDATED THE FORECAST TO REMOVE MORNING WORDING AND AJUST SKY TRENDS WITH MOSTLY CLOUDY TO CLOUDY SKIES OVER CENTRAL IL THIS MORNING BECOMING PARTLY SUNNY THIS AFTERNOON. ALREADY HAVE PARTLY SUNNY SKIES IN SE IL AND THIS AREA WITH HAVE THE BEST CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS THIS AFTERNOON. AREAS FROM I-55 NW SHOULD STAY DRY TODAY. HIGHS MOSTLY IN THE LOWER 80S THIS AFTERNOON...BUT RANGING FROM NEAR 80F FROM PEORIA AND BLOOMINGTON NORTH AND NEAR 85F IN SE IL NEAR THE WABASH RIVER WHERE IT STAYS RATHER HUMID TODAY. LATE MORNING SURFACE MAP SHOWS WEAK LOW PRESSURE OF 1007 MB OVER SE LOWER MI WITH ITS COLD FRONT EXTENDING ACROSS CENTRAL INDIANA INTO CENTRAL IL BETWEEN I-72 AND I-70. MOST OF IL HAS REMAINED DRY THIS MORNING THOUGH PLENTY OF CLOUD COVER AROUND...WITH LINGERING LIGHT FOG/HAZE AROUND BLOOMINGTON WHICH WAS DENSE UNTIL 15Z/10 AM. 10 AM TEMPS RANGED FROM THE MID 60S NORTH OF LINCOLN TO THE MID TO UPPER 70S FROM I-72 SOUTH. DEWPOINTS RANGE FROM AROUND 60 FROM PEORIA NORTH TO THE UPPER 60S TO NEAR 70F FROM I-72 SOUTH. NEARLY ZONAL UPPER LEVEL FLOW ALOFT ACROSS THE NORTHERN HALF OF THE COUNTRY INCLUDING IL. THERE WAS A VERY WEAK UPPER LEVEL TROF OVER WI/IL WHILE 576 DM 500 MB CUTOFF LOW WAS OVER SE TX WITH MORE WIDESPREAD SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE SOUTHERN PLAINS AND GULF COAST STATES. SHORT RANGE MODELS SHOW DIFFUSE FRONTAL BOUNDARY PRESSING THROUGH SE IL THIS AFTERNOON GIVING A CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS THERE WHILE JUST SLIGHT CHANCE AS FAR NW AS RANTOUL TO SPRINGFIELD WHERE MORE HUMID AIR MASS LINGERS. LITTLE UPPER LEVEL ENERGY AND CONVERGENCE ALONG BOUNDARY SO SPC DOES NOT HAVE ANY RISK OF SEVERE STORMS THIS AFTERNOON. 12Z NAM CAPES PEAK FROM 1000 TO 1600 J/KG THIS AFTERNOON AND LIFTED INDICES OF MINUS 2-4C FROM I-72 SOUTH WHICH SUPPORTS ISOLATED TO SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS THIS AFTERNOON. 850 MB TEMPS OF 14-16C SUPPORTS SEASONABLE WARM HIGHS IN THE LOWER 80S OVER CENTRAL IL WITH SE IL BY THE WABASH RIVER NEAR 85F. DEWPOINTS RANGING FROM THE LOWER 60S NORTH AND UPPER 60S SOUTH WHERE MUGGY CONDITIONS PERSIST THIS AFTERNOON. WINDS GENERALLY LESS THAN 10 MPH TODAY AND LIGHT TONIGHT. HUETTL && .AVIATION... ISSUED 1238 PM CDT THU JUN 3 2010 MVFR CEILINGS WILL OCCUR AT TIMES THIS AFTERNOON ALONG I-72 AFFECTING SPI...DEC AND CMI AIRPORT TERMINALS. ISOLATED TO SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS THIS AFTERNOON SHOULD STAY 10-15 MILES SOUTH OF I-72 WITH A FRONTAL BOUNDARY. WEAK HIGH PRESSURE OF 1011 MB OVER WI DRIFTS INTO THE EASTERN GREAT LAKES BY MIDDAY FRI WHILE 1000 MB LOW PRESSURE MOVES INTO SOUTHERN MANITOBA AND TUGS THE FRONT BACK NORTH ACROSS CENTRAL IL FRI. MVFR VISIBILITIES POSSIBLE WITH FOG OVERNIGHT UNTIL 15Z/10 AM FRI. HAVE VCSH AT PIA FROM 15Z-18Z FRI WITH BETTER CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS OVER CENTRAL IL LATER IN THE DAY FRI. NNE WINDS 5-9 KTS THIS AFTERNOON BECOMES LIGHT SE TONIGHT AND SSW AROUND 10 KTS DURING FRI MORNING. HUETTL && .PREV DISCUSSION... ISSUED 240 AM CDT THU JUN 3 2010 FRONTAL BOUNDARY OVER THE AREA IS SOMEWHAT DIFFUSE...BUT APPEARS TO BE DRAPED ACROSS THE FAR NORTHERN CWA THIS HOUR. HAD A NARROW LINE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ALONG THE BOUNDARY EARLIER...BUT JUST A FEW SHOWERS LINGER OVER MARSHALL COUNTY. MORE EXTENSIVE SHOWER AND THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY ROLLING ACROSS SOUTH CENTRAL ILLINOIS AND HAS REACHED AREAS FROM EFFINGHAM TO FLORA. CLOUD TOPS HAD BEEN COOLING IN THIS AREA...BUT HAVE WARMED A BIT RECENTLY. THIS IS OCCURRING IN AN AREA WITH MLCAPES AROUND 1500 J/KG PER SPC MESOANALYSIS GRAPHICS. FAIRLY ZONAL FLOW EXPECTED TO CONTINUE ACROSS THE CONUS THROUGH THE WEEKEND. TIMING OF PERIODIC IMPULSES ALONG THE MAIN FLOW...AND RESULTING RAIN CHANCES...ARE THE MAIN FORECAST ISSUES. SHORT TERM...TODAY THROUGH SUNDAY... CURRENT ACTIVITY BEING DEPICTED REASONABLY WELL BY 3KM HRRR AND RUC-13 MODELS...ALTHOUGH THEY APPEAR TO BE LAGGING BEHIND BY AN HOUR OR SO. BOTH SHOW RAPID DIMINISHING OF THE RAIN BY AROUND SUNRISE. WILL NEED TO MAKE A LAST MINUTE DECISION ON HOW HIGH TO GO WITH POPS IN THIS AREA TODAY. IN ANY EVENT...HIGHEST POPS WILL BE ACROSS THE SOUTHEAST CWA AHEAD OF THE FRONT...WHICH MOST OF THE SHORT-RANGE MODELS HAVE THROUGH THE AREA BY MIDDAY...ALTHOUGH THE NAM MODEL IS A BIT SLOWER IN THIS REGARD. SLIGHT CHANCES BETWEEN THE ILLINOIS RIVER AND I-55 SHOULD MAINLY BE CONFINED TO THE MORNING HOURS. NARROW AXIS OF HIGH PRESSURE TO PUSH ACROSS THE AREA OVERNIGHT...BUT NEXT FRONTAL BOUNDARY WILL BEGIN MOVING SOUTHEAST OUT OF MINNESOTA AND IOWA ON FRIDAY. MODELS ARE IN GENERAL AGREEMENT ON BRINGING THE FRONT INTO CENTRAL ILLINOIS BY FRIDAY EVENING...BEFORE IT BECOMES STATIONARY OR WASHES OUT A BIT AFTER BECOMING PARALLEL TO THE UPPER FLOW. A COMBINATION OF THE BOUNDARY ITSELF...AS WELL AS OUTFLOWS FROM AN MCS MOVING ACROSS THE UPPER MISSISSIPPI VALLEY...SHOULD BE THE FOCUS FOR SHOWER AND STORM DEVELOPMENT IN OUR AREA ON FRIDAY. CAPES PROGGED TO RISE OVER 2000 J/KG DURING THE AFTERNOON WITH 0-6KM BULK SHEAR INCREASING TO AROUND 45 KNOTS. LATEST DAY2 SEVERE OUTLOOK HAS MOST OF THE CWA WITHIN THE 30 PERCENT CONTOUR EXCEPT FOR AREAS SOUTH OF I-70...WITH DAMAGING WINDS AND LARGE HAIL THE MAIN CONCERNS. PWAT VALUES INCREASING TO NEAR 1.7 INCHES ALSO SUGGEST SOME HEAVY RAIN POTENTIAL. ACTIVITY EXPECTED TO FIRE IN MID TO LATE AFTERNOON AND CONTINUE INTO MID EVENING. SHOULD SEE MORE SHOWERS/STORMS FIRE ON SATURDAY...ALTHOUGH EXACT PLACEMENT STILL IN QUESTION AND BOUNDARIES FROM THE PREVIOUS NIGHT MAY HAVE SOME EFFECT. WILL GO WITH GENERAL 30-40 PERCENT POPS AREA-WIDE SATURDAY AND SATURDAY NIGHT FOR NOW. SHOULD SEE THE FRONT PUSH EAST AGAIN AND THROUGH THE AREA BY EARLY SUNDAY. LONG TERM...MONDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY... GFS AND ECMWF SIMILAR WITH THE UPPER PATTERN THROUGH THE FIRST PART OF THE WEEK...BEFORE THE GFS BEGINS TO BUILD A RIDGE ACROSS THE WESTERN CONUS. SMALL SCALE FEATURES IN THE GENERAL FLOW DIFFER HOWEVER...SPECIFICALLY WITH PLACEMENT OF THE PERIODIC RAIN CHANCES. NO CHANGES MADE TO THIS PART OF THE FORECAST THOUGH. GEELHART && .ILX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NONE. &&
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LINCOLN IL 1038 AM CDT THU JUN 3 2010 ILZ027-029-036-037-040-041-047-041200- CASS-FULTON-KNOX-MASON-PEORIA-SCHUYLER-TAZEWELL- 1038 AM CDT THU JUN 3 2010 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL ILLINOIS. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT THE ILLINOIS RIVER FROM PEORIA DOWNSTREAM IS EXPECTED TO REMAIN OR GET INTO FLOOD FOR THE NEXT SEVERAL DAYS. THE SPOON RIVER AT LONDON MILLS IS EXPECTED TO FALL BELOW FLOOD STAGE EARLY FRIDAY MORNING. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY THE NEXT COLD FRONT WILL APPROACH THE AREA LATE FRIDAY AND STALL OVER CENTRAL ILLINOIS THROUGH THE DAY SATURDAY. THIS SYSTEM WILL TRIGGER A CHANCE OF SEVERE STORMS FROM FRIDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH SATURDAY NIGHT. THE MAIN THREAT WILL BE DAMAGING WINDS...LARGE HAIL AND VERY HEAVY RAIN. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED THROUGH TONIGHT. ILZ028-030-031-038-042>046-048>057-061>063-066>068-073-041200- CHAMPAIGN-CHRISTIAN-CLARK-COLES-CRAWFORD-CUMBERLAND-DE WITT- DOUGLAS-EDGAR-EFFINGHAM-JASPER-LAWRENCE-LOGAN-MACON-MARSHALL- MCLEAN-MENARD-MORGAN-MOULTRIE-PIATT-SANGAMON-SCOTT-SHELBY-STARK- VERMILION-WOODFORD- 1038 AM CDT THU JUN 3 2010 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL ILLINOIS...EAST CENTRAL ILLINOIS AND SOUTHEAST ILLINOIS. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE THIS AFTERNOON FROM I-72 SOUTH...WITH SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING IN SOUTHEAST ILLINOIS FROM I-70 SOUTHEAST. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY THE NEXT COLD FRONT WILL APPROACH THE AREA LATE FRIDAY AND STALL OVER CENTRAL ILLINOIS THROUGH THE DAY SATURDAY. THIS SYSTEM WILL TRIGGER A CHANCE OF SEVERE STORMS FROM FRIDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH SATURDAY NIGHT. THE MAIN THREAT WILL BE DAMAGING WINDS...LARGE HAIL AND VERY HEAVY RAIN. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED THROUGH TONIGHT. ILZ071-072-041200- CLAY-RICHLAND- 1038 AM CDT THU JUN 3 2010 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHEAST ILLINOIS. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT THE LITTLE WABASH RIVER AT CLAY CITY IS EXPECTED TO BE IN FLOOD FRIDAY AND FRIDAY NIGHT. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY THE NEXT COLD FRONT WILL APPROACH THE AREA LATE FRIDAY AND STALL OVER CENTRAL ILLINOIS THROUGH THE DAY SATURDAY. THIS SYSTEM WILL TRIGGER A CHANCE OF SEVERE STORMS FROM FRIDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH SATURDAY NIGHT. THE MAIN THREAT WILL BE DAMAGING WINDS...LARGE HAIL AND VERY HEAVY RAIN. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED THROUGH TONIGHT. HUETTL
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LINCOLN IL 1149 AM CDT THU JUN 3 2010 ILZ051-052-031900- SANGAMON-CHRISTIAN- INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...SPRINGFIELD...TAYLORVILLE 1149 AM CDT THU JUN 3 2010 ...FUNNEL CLOUDS SIGHTED OVER SOUTHERN SANGAMON COUNTY... FUNNEL CLOUDS WERE SIGHTED IN SOUTHERN SANGAMON COUNTY WEST OF AUBURN AT 1145 AM CDT AND MOVING VERY LITTLE. ATMOSPHERIC CONDITIONS EXIST TODAY SOUTH OF I-72 AND SPRINGFIELD THAT FAVOR THE POSSIBLE FORMATION OF WEAK CIRCULATIONS ON A PRE- EXISTING BOUNDARY. THIS FRONT IS ABOUT 10 TO 15 MILES SOUTH OF I-72 AND WILL MOVE SOUTH TOWARD I-70 BY MID AFTERNOON. SOME OF THESE CIRCULATIONS ARE OCCURRING UNDERNEATH DEVELOPING SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS...WHERE A FUNNEL CLOUD MAY DEVELOP. ONCE THE RAIN BEGINS...THE FUNNEL CLOUD DISSIPATES. LOW HANGING CLOUDS CAN ALSO APPEAR TO DIP UP AND DOWN AT TIMES... BUT THEY WILL NOT SHOW SIGNS OF ANY RAPID ROTATION. AN ACTUAL FUNNEL CLOUD WILL EXHIBIT SPINNING IN A COUNTER-CLOCKWISE DIRECTION. IN RARE INSTANCES THESE FUNNELS MAY BRIEFLY TOUCHDOWN. STAY ALERT AND BE PREPARED TO MOVE TO A SAFE SHELTER IF A FUNNEL CLOUD APPROACHES THE GROUND. 07
The Lincoln radar (KILX), 74 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 18:08 UTC.
1 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.
A tornado briefly touched down in rural Christian County. No damage was reported.
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, June 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: 236515.