A round of early morning storms was caused by increasing southwest low-level winds that brought warmer and more unstable air into the region. During the afternoon, numerous thunderstorms occurred as strong southwest low-level winds brought warmth and moisture into southern Illinois.
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.
A round of early morning storms was caused by increasing southwest low-level winds that brought warmer and more unstable air into the region. During the afternoon, numerous thunderstorms occurred as strong southwest low-level winds brought warmth and moisture into southern Illinois. Daytime heating further destabilized the atmosphere. A 500 mb shortwave trough moving eastward across Missouri provided support for the storms, some of which produced marginally severe hail and damaging 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 Jun 17, 2:32 AM CST, 3 hours 46 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY 332 AM CDT FRI JUN 17 2011 .DISCUSSION... GIVEN THE MORE DRAMATIC SHIFT BY THE SHORT RANGE NUMERICAL GUIDANCE /NAMELY THE 00Z NAM-WRF AND THE 21Z...03Z SREF/ IN THE EVOLUTION OF THE LOW AMPLITUDE MID-LEVEL RIDGE OVER THE WFO PAH FORECAST AREA OVER THE WEEKEND...THE CURRENT FORECAST PACKAGE HAS BEEN ADJUSTED TO REFLECT A WETTER SOLUTION THROUGH AT LEAST EARLY SUNDAY. THIS FORECAST IS FURTHER COMPLICATED BY THE MESOSCALE INTERACTIONS EITHER ONGOING OR ANTICIPATED DURING THE NEXT 24-72 HOURS. TO ILLUSTRATE THE POINT...THE MCS THAT IMPACTED NERN OK ABOUT 24 HOURS AGO MUTATED INTO A DECENT MCS OVER NERN AR/WRN TN/NRN MS DURING THE DAY ON THURSDAY...MITIGATING/RETARDING THE NEWD FLOW OF MOISTURE/INSTABILITY/LIFT INTO THE WFO PAH FORECAST AREA UNTIL NOW. THE CURRENT CONVECTIVE ACTIVITY OVER SERN MO IS CLOSELY TIED TO A SHARP WARM FRONTAL ZONE/MID-LEVEL VORTICITY AXIS EVIDENT OVER SOUTH CENTRAL MO ON ALL OF THE 00Z FRIDAY MANDATORY UPPER LEVEL CHARTS. IF IT WERE NOT FOR THE COLD POOL OVER NERN AR/WRN TN DISRUPTING THE LOW LEVEL FLOW...MORE CONVECTION WOULD HAVE TAKEN PLACE FURTHER EAST ACROSS THE WFO PAH FORECAST AREA. FOR TODAY...MODIFIED POP/WX CHANCES TO REFLECT THE ANTICIPATED EASTWARD MOVEMENT OF THE WARM FRONT BALANCED BY THE WANING IMPACT OF THE COLD POOL/CLOUD COVER...ETC DURING THE MORNING HOURS...PLACING THE HIGHEST POPS EAST OF THE MS RIVER DURING THE AFTERNOON. THE DIFFICULTY IN THE POP/WX FORECAST COMES TONIGHT AND EXTENDS THROUGH EARLY SUNDAY...AS THE DEEPENING LOW OVER THE WESTERN U.S. GRADUALLY BECOMES MORE ORGANIZED AND BUILDS THE RIDGE FURTHER NORTH INTO THE WFO PAH FORECAST AREA...PROVIDING SOME CAPPING WITH WARMER MID-LEVEL TEMPERATURES. THERE ARE A SERIES OF MINOR RIPPLES/ SHORTWAVES/ EMBEDDED AND ROTATING AROUND THE BASE OF THE WESTERN U.S TROUGH/LOW...AND WILL IMPEDE THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE RIDGE. GIVEN THE INDUCED BAROCLINICITY ASSOCIATED WITH THESE WAVES...THERE WILL LIKELY BE RUN TO RUN VARIATIONS IN THE PLACEMENT OF CONVECTIVE ACTIVITY ACROSS THE WFO PAH FORECAST AREA. FOR NOW...POP CHANCES HAVE BEEN INCREASED AND PUSHED BACK FURTHER WEST...WITH THE LOWEST CHANCES ALONG THE EDGE OF BUILDING RIDGE TOWARD THE END OF THE WEEKEND. FOR MONDAY THROUGH TUESDAY...THE RIDGE SHOULD DOMINATE AND MINIMIZE ANY MEASURABLE CHANCES FOR PRECIPITATION. BY WEDNESDAY...THE LEADING INFLUENCE OF THE APPROACHING/EJECTING WESTERN U.S. LOW SHOULD BEGIN TO IMPACT THE WFO PAH FORECAST AREA. MAX/MIN TEMPERATURES AND DEWPOINTS WILL BE HARD TO PIN DOWN WITH THE MESOSCALE INFLUENCES IN PLACED THIS WEEKEND. THEREFORE...IT WOULD BE WISE TO EXPECT SOME SIGNIFICANT DEVIATIONS FROM FORECAST TEMPERATURES IN THE VICINITY AND CORE OF MCS TRACKS THIS WEEKEND. && .AVIATION... WITH THE WARM FRONT ALREADY THROUGH ALL TAF SITES...WINDS...OUTSIDE OF THUNDERSTORM OUTFLOWS...WILL GENERALLY BE SOUTH TO SOUTHWEST THROUGH THE ENTIRE PERIOD. STRONGEST WIND SPEEDS WILL TYPICALLY BE IN THE AFTERNOON AND NOT MORE THAN 10KTS SUSTAINED. WINDSPEEDS TONIGHT WILL BE AROUND 5KTS...PLENTY ENOUGH TO PREVENT SIGNIFICANT FOG DEVELOPMENT. OTHERWISE...THE ONLY CONCERN TO AVIATION FOR THE 12Z TAFS WILL BE THUNDERSTORMS. THUNDERSTORMS WILL FLIRT WITH KCGI AND KPAH BY SUNRISE THIS MORNING...AND THEN GENERALLY SHIFT TOWARD THE NORTHEAST AND KOWB/KEVV FOR FRIDAY AFTERNOON AND NIGHT. THERE IS SOME SIGNAL FOR A NOCTURNAL CONVECTIVE SYSTEM TO MOVE THROUGH THE ENTIRE AREA LATE TONIGHT. && .PAH WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... KY...NONE. MO...NONE. IL...NONE. IN...NONE. && AVIATION/FIRE WEATHER...DRS SHORT/LONG TERM PUBLIC...SMITH
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY 432 AM CDT FRI JUN 17 2011 ILZ075>078-080>094-INZ081-082-085>088-KYZ001>022-MOZ076-086-087- 100-107>112-114-181000- 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- 432 AM CDT FRI JUN 17 2011 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHERN ILLINOIS...SOUTHWEST INDIANA...WESTERN KENTUCKY AND SOUTHEAST MISSOURI. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT A FEW STORMS OVER EXTREME SOUTHEAST MISSOURI...NEAR THE BOOT HEEL...AND INTO EXTREME SOUTHWEST KENTUCKY MAY PRODUCE LARGE HAIL AND GUSTY WINDS BEFORE DAYBREAK TODAY. THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS POSTED A SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ALONG AND WEST OF A LINE FROM POPLAR BLUFF AND CAPE GIRARDEAU MISSOURI...ONWARD TO WEST FRANKFORT AND WEST SALEM IN SOUTHERN ILLINOIS. THE MAIN HAZARDS WITH ANY THUNDERSTORMS WOULD BE LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS. THE TIME PERIODS OF GREATEST CONCERN WOULD BE FROM LATE MORNING TO EARLY AFTERNOON TODAY...THEN AGAIN JUST BEFORE DAYBREAK SATURDAY MORNING. SECONDARY HAZARDS FOR ANY THUNDERSTORMS TODAY OR TONIGHT WILL BE LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN AND FREQUENT LIGHTNING. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS FORECAST A SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE STORMS FOR MOST OF THE OUTLOOK AREA...WITH THE POSSIBLE EXCEPTION OF THE SOUTHERN BORDER COUNTIES OF SOUTHEAST MISSOURI AND WEST KENTUCKY...FOR SATURDAY AND SUNDAY. THE MAIN HAZARD WILL BE DAMAGING WIND GUSTS FROM CLUSTERS OF THUNDERSTORMS...WITH SECONDARY HAZARDS TIED TO DAMAGING HAIL AND FREQUENT LIGHTNING. ON SATURDAY...WINDS OUTSIDE ANY THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY MAY GUST AS HIGH AS 30 MPH DURING THE LATE MORNING AND AFTERNOON HOURS...ESPECIALLY ACROSS PARTS OF WEST KENTUCKY...SOUTHERN ILLINOIS AND EXTREME SOUTHEAST MISSOURI. A LAKE WIND ADVISORY MAY BE NEEDED. HEAT INDEX VALUES WILL LIKELY REACH INTO THE 100 TO 105 DEGREE RANGE ACROSS THE DELTA REGION OF SOUTHEAST MISSOURI...AND ADJACENT SECTIONS OF EXTREME SOUTHWEST KENTUCKY AND ILLINOIS BETWEEN NOON AND 8 PM ON SATURDAY. IN ADDITION...HEAT INDEX VALUES MAY HOVER AROUND 100 DEGREES MONDAY AFTERNOON ACROSS MOST OF THE OUTLOOK AREA...OUTSIDE OF THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY. SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS ARE FORECAST AGAIN WEDNESDAY AND THURSDAY. THE PROBABILITY OF WIDESPREAD SEVERE WEATHER IS LOW AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUESTED THIS AFTERNOON...AND AGAIN ON SATURDAY AND SUNDAY. SMITH
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY
321 AM CDT FRI JUN 17 2011
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0316 AM HAIL HENDRICKSON 36.90N 90.47W
06/17/2011 M1.00 INCH BUTLER MO TRAINED SPOTTER
&&
K SMITHThe Paducah radar (KPAH), 20 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 12:17 UTC.
4 hail, 3 thunderstorm wind, 1 heavy rain. Local standard time, as filed.
Most of the hailstones were half-dollar size, but a number of stones measured 1.75 inches in diameter. Some dents were observed in vehicles.
Copious amounts of quarter-size hail covered the ground.
Trees were down near Waltonville and along Highway 37 south of Mount Vernon.
Wind gusts from 55 to 60 mph were estimated along the leading edge of a thunderstorm gust front.
Some localized street flooding occurred in low areas.
Tree limbs were down on power lines.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Illinois in 2011Every state in 2011This day in weather historyWarnings in Illinois, June 2011
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: 314017, 314023, 314031, 314036, 314051, 314025, 314032, 314026.