An extended period of dry weather continued to worsen across central and southeast Illinois during the month of August. yearly deficits since January 1st remained in the 8 to 13 inch range.
Every event with a place to put it; 35 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. 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.
An extended period of dry weather continued to worsen across central and southeast Illinois during the month of August. Despite near normal monthly rainfall totals of 3 to 4 inches in many locations...yearly deficits since January 1st remained in the 8 to 13 inch range. The prolonged period of dry weather caused nearly all of central and southeast Illinois to be upgraded to the Extreme Drought Category (D3)...while Lawrence and Crawford counties in southeast Illinois persisted in an Exceptional Drought (D4).
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 Jul 31, 10:50 PM CST, 1 hour 10 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LINCOLN IL 1150 PM CDT TUE JUL 31 2012 .DISCUSSION... ISSUED 900 PM CDT TUE JUL 31 2012 A FRONTAL BOUNDARY DROPPED SOUTH THROUGH THE AREA TODAY...WITH A FEW STORMS EAST OF I-57...BUT OVERALL IT WAS A QUIET PASSAGE. EVEN DEWPOINTS AND TEMPS BEHIND THE FRONT ARE NOT SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER. DEWPOINTS MIXED DOWN TO THE LOWER 60S IN OUR NORTHEAST AREAS DURING PEAK HEATING THIS AFTERNOON. THAT CAN BE A GENERAL GUIDELINE AS TO WHERE OUR LOWS MIGHT DIP TO TONIGHT BARRING ANY SIGNIFICANT AIRMASS CHANGES OVERNIGHT. THAT AREA WAS ALREADY BEHIND THE FRONT BY EARLY AFTERNOON. UPSTREAM OBS SHOW LITTLE IF ANY DRIER AIR MIXED DOWN...SO IF WE COOL DOWN TO THE LOW 60S...WE MAY SEE MORE PATCHY FOG AGAIN TONIGHT. LOW SPOTS WILL BE ESPECIALLY SUSCEPTIBLE TO THE FOG. WE WILL ADD A MENTION OF FOG LATER TONIGHT...BUT ANY DENSE FOG SHOULD BE ISOLATED. WINDS HAVE SHIFTED TO THE IN NEARLY ALL OF THE AREA...AND WILL BECOME LIGHT AND VARIABLE OVERNIGHT AS SURFACE PRESSURE RISES DOMINATE. NO MAJOR CHANGES TO THE FORECAST OTHER THAN ADDING FOG TO THE WEATHER. UPDATED INFO WILL BE AVAILABLE SHORTLY. SHIMON && .AVIATION... ISSUED 1149 PM CDT TUE JUL 31 2012...FOR THE 06Z TAFS LIGHT WINDS AND CLEAR SKIES WILL ALLOW FOR FAVORABLE RADIATIONAL COOLING. DEWPOINT SPREADS WILL LIKELY DROP BELOW 5F LATE TONIGHT...WITH PATCHY FOG DEVELOPING...ESPECIALLY IN LOW SPOTS AND VALLEYS. WE DECIDED TO ADD A TEMPO FOR MVFR FOG FROM 10Z-12Z. CONFIDENCE IS LOW ON FOG COVERAGE. LAST NIGHT SPI HAD A VV003 WITH VIS DOWN TO 1SM. A REPEAT TONIGHT IS NOT A CERTAINTY...BUT A LACK OF SIGNIFICANT DRYING BEHIND THE COLD FRONT WILL ALLOW FOR THE POTENTIAL OF LIGHT FOG AS WE RADIATE DOWN QUICKLY TOWARD THE DEWPOINT. WINDS WILL BE MAINLY ENE OVERNIGHT AT LESS THAN 08KT. PRIMARY WIND DIRECTION TOMORROW WILL BE EAST...AOB 10KT. SHIMON && .PREV DISCUSSION... ISSUED 254 PM CDT TUE JUL 31 2012 LATEST SURFACE ANALYSIS HAD A WEAK COLD FRONT CUTTING ACROSS THE FORECAST AREA...CURRENTLY EXTENDING FROM MCLEAN COUNTY TO SCHUYLER COUNTY. SATELLITE LOOPS SHOW A LINE OF AGITATED CU JUST AHEAD OF THE FRONT...WITH AN OCCASIONAL THUNDERSTORM ALSO MAKING AN APPEARANCE. THIS FRONT WILL QUICKLY LEAVE THE FORECAST AREA THIS EVENING...WITH THE NEXT BEST CHANCE FOR PRECIPITATION NOT EXPECTED TO ARRIVE UNTIL A STRONGER FRONT PUSHES THROUGH SATURDAY/SATURDAY NIGHT. MAIN FORECAST PROBLEMS TODAY REVOLVE AROUND TEMPERATURES THOROUGH THE PERIOD...AS WELL AS PRECIPITATION CHANCES IN THE VICINITY OF THE NEXT FRONT. 12Z MODELS IN GOOD AGREEMENT OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL DAYS WITH THE MAIN FEATURES. HOWEVER...DIFFERENCES STILL EXIST WITH THE MORE SUBTLE WAVES IN ADVANCE OF SATURDAY/S STRONGER SYSTEM...AND IT IS DIFFICULT TO FAVOR ANY ONE MODEL SOLUTION WITH RESPECT TO THESE FEATURES. WILL CONTINUE TO FOLLOW A MODEL BLEND IN THIS REGARD AND DOWNPLAY THE PRECIPITATION RISK UNTIL THE END OF THE WEEK SYSTEM. SHORT TERM...TONIGHT THROUGH FRIDAY...EXPECT CURRENT FRONT/PRECIPITATION RISK TO BE OUT OF THE AREA BY 00Z TONIGHT...SO DO NOT PLAN TO CARRY POPS TONIGHT. BEHIND THE FRONT...THE NORTHWEST UPPER LEVEL FLOW TURNS MORE NEUTRAL AND A SURFACE HIGH WILL BUILD ACROSS THE AREA INTO THURSDAY. A WEAK UPPER LEVEL WAVE WILL PUSH A WEAK FRONT THROUGH THE AREA LATER THURSDAY INTO THURSDAY NIGHT. THE FORCING WITH THIS FEATURE IS MEAGER...SO WILL LIMIT POPS TO SLIGHT CHANCE AT THIS TIME. ANOTHER WEAK WAVE WILL RIDE ALONG THE FRONT ON FRIDAY AFTER IT HAS CLEARED THE AREA. A FEW MODEL SOLUTIONS THROW SOME PRECIPITATION BACK NORTH INTO THE FORECAST AREA AS IT PASSES BY...BUT HAVE AGAIN LIMITED POPS TO THE SLIGHT CHANCE CATEGORY GIVEN THE WEAK FORCING AND MODEL TENDENCIES TO OVERDO PRECIPITATION DURING THE CURRENT DROUGHT. TEMPERATURES SHOULD REMAIN PRETTY STEADY STATE THROUGH THE PERIOD... WITH DAYTIME HIGHS IN THE 90S AND OVERNIGHT LOWS MAINLY IN THE 70S. HOWEVER...LOWS IN THE 60S ARE LIKELY TONIGHT AND POSSIBLE WEDNESDAY NIGHT DUE TO THE LOWER DEW POINT AIR THAT WILL FILTER IN BEHIND TODAY/S COLD FRONT. LONG TERM...SATURDAY THROUGH TUESDAY...A STRONGER WAVE WILL PUSH A FRONT THROUGH THE AREA SATURDAY/SATURDAY NIGHT. THIS FAIRLY VIGOROUS SYSTEM SHOULD PROVIDE THE BEST CHANCE FOR MORE WIDESPREAD PRECIPITATION THAN WE HAVE SEEN IN A WHILE AS IT MOVES THROUGH. HOWEVER...THAT IS NOT SAYING MUCH THIS SUMMER AND IT SHOULD HAVE LITTLE TO NO IMPACT ON THE CURRENT DROUGHT. SOUTHERLY FLOW AHEAD OF THIS STRONGER SYSTEM IS APT TO MAKE SATURDAY THE WARMEST DAY OF THE NEXT SEVEN...WITH SOMEWHAT COOLER CONDITIONS EXPECTED IN ITS WAKE. BAK && .ILX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NONE. &&
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LINCOLN IL 257 PM CDT TUE JUL 31 2012 ILZ027>031-036>038-040>043-047>051-011100- CASS-DE WITT-FULTON-KNOX-LOGAN-MARSHALL-MASON-MCLEAN-MENARD- MORGAN-PEORIA-SANGAMON-SCHUYLER-SCOTT-STARK-TAZEWELL-WOODFORD- 257 PM CDT TUE JUL 31 2012 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL ILLINOIS. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY THERE IS A CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS FRIDAY AND AGAIN SATURDAY AND SATURDAY NIGHT AS A COLD FRONT TRACKS SOUTHEAST ACROSS THE MIDWEST. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED THROUGH TONIGHT. ILZ044>046-052>057-061>063-066>068-071>073-011100- CHAMPAIGN-CHRISTIAN-CLARK-CLAY-COLES-CRAWFORD-CUMBERLAND-DOUGLAS- EDGAR-EFFINGHAM-JASPER-LAWRENCE-MACON-MOULTRIE-PIATT-RICHLAND- SHELBY-VERMILION- 257 PM CDT TUE JUL 31 2012 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL ILLINOIS...EAST CENTRAL ILLINOIS AND SOUTHEAST ILLINOIS. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT AN ISOLATED THUNDERSTORM WILL BE POSSIBLE TODAY OVER PARTS OF EAST CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST ILLINOIS. THOUGH WIDESPREAD SEVERE WEATHER IS NOT EXPECTED...SOME OF THE STORMS MAY BECOME MORE ORGANIZED SHOULD THEY DEVELOP. THE STRONGER STORMS COULD PRODUCE SEVERE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY THERE IS A CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS FRIDAY AND AGAIN SATURDAY AND SATURDAY NIGHT AS A COLD FRONT TRACKS SOUTHEAST ACROSS THE MIDWEST. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED THROUGH TONIGHT. HJS
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
35 drought. Local standard time, as filed.
Extreme Drought conditions continued through August in Cass County. Only 1.04 of rain was recorded at Virginia, making it the 4th driest August on record. Due to the drought, a ban on open burning remained in place. Crop stress was extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions improved to Severe Drought during the month of August in Champaign County. The flow along the Salt Fork near St. Joseph dropped to the lowest on record. Despite recent rainfall that helped ease the drought conditions somewhat, a ban on open burning remained in place. Crop stress was extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions continued through August in Christian County. Despite monthly rainfall totals of 5 to 6 inches in a few spots, voluntary water restrictions remained in place in Taylorville. Crop stress was extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions continued through August in Clark County. Despite monthly rainfall totals of 3 to 4 inches, a ban on open burning remained in place. Crop stress was extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions continued through August in Clay County. Despite monthly rainfall of 2 to 3 inches, a ban on open burning remained in place. Crop stress was extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions continued through August in Coles County. The flow along the Kaskaskia River at Cooks Mills dropped to the 4th lowest on record. Despite monthly rainfall of 2 to 3 inches, a ban on open burning remained in place across the county and voluntary water restrictions continued in Mattoon. Crop stress was extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Exceptional Drought conditions continued through August in Crawford County. The flow along the North Fork of the Embarras River near Oblong dropped to the 7th lowest on record. Despite monthly rainfall of 2 to 3 inches, a ban on open burning remained in place. Crop stress was extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions continued through August in Cumberland County. Despite monthly rainfall of 3 to 4 inches, crop stress was extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions continued through August in DeWitt County. Despite monthly rainfall of 2 to 3 inches, a ban on open burning remained in place. Crop stress was extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions continued through August in Douglas County. The flow along the Embarras River near Camargo tied for the lowest on record, reaching zero on 15 days during the month. Monthly rainfall of 2 to 3 inches allowed officials to lift the ban on open burning: however, crop stress remained extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions continued through August in Edgar County. Monthly rainfall of 3 to 4 inches allowed officials to lift the ban on open burning: however, crop stress remained extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions continued through August in Effingham County. Monthly rainfall of 4 to 6 inches allowed officials to lift the ban on open burning: however, crop stress remained extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions continued through August in Fulton County. Despite monthly rainfall of 3 to 4 inches, a ban on open burning remained in place. Crop stress was extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions continued through August in Jasper County. Monthly rainfall of 2 to 3 inches allowed officials to lift the ban on open burning: however, crop stress remained extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions developed across Knox County on August 7th, but rainfall of 3 to 4 inches caused an improvement back to Severe Drought by the end of the month. Crop stress was extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Exceptional Drought conditions continued through August in Lawrence County. The flow along the Embarras River at Lawrenceville dropped to the 2nd lowest on record. Monthly rainfall of 4 to 5 inches allowed officials to lift the ban on open burning: however, crop stress remained extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions continued through August in Logan County. The flow along the Lake Fork near Cornland dropped to the 5th lowest on record. Only 1.47 of rain fell in Lincoln, making it the 13th driest August on record. The ban on open burning remained in place across the county, while mandatory water restrictions continued in Latham. Crop stress was extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions continued through August in Macon County. The flow along the Sangamon River at Route 48 at Decatur tied for the 8th lowest on record. The ban on open burning remained in place across the county, while mandatory water restrictions continued for Decatur and Mt. Zion. Crop stress was extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions developed across Marshall County on August 7th, but rainfall of 3 to 4 inches caused an improvement back to Severe Drought by the end of the month. The flow along the Illinois River at Henry dropped to the 10th lowest on record. Crop stress was extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions continued through August in Mason County. Despite monthly rainfall of 1 to 3 inches, crop stress remained extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions continued through August in McLean County. The flow along Kickapoo Creek near Bloomington dropped to the lowest on record, reaching zero on 4 days. Despite monthly rainfall of 4 to 6 inches, crop stress remained extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions continued through August in Menard County. The flow along the Sangamon River at Petersburg dropped to the 3rd lowest on record. Crop stress was extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions continued through August in Morgan County. Despite monthly rainfall of 2 to 3 inches, a ban on open burning remined in place across the county and mandatory water restrictions continued for Jacksonville. Crop stress was extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions continued through August in Moultrie County. The flow along the West Okaw River near Lovington tied for the lowest on record. Due to the drought conditions, a ban on open burning was put into place across the county. Crop stress was extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions developed across Peoria County on August 7th. Despite monthly rainfall of 3 to 4 inches, crop stress remained extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions continued through August in Piatt County. The flow along the Sangamon River at Monticello dropped to the lowest on record, reaching zero on 15 days. The river had never reached zero flow during the month of August in 105 years. Due to the drought conditions, a ban on open burning was put into place across the county. Crop stress was extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions continued through August in Richland County. Despite monthly rainfall of 2 to 3 inches, crop stress remained extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions continued through August in Sangamon County. Despite 2.94 of rainfall at the Springfield Airport, deficits since January 1st were still over 9 inches. Due to the drought conditions, a ban on open burning was put into place across the county, while mandatory water restrictions continued for Springfield, Sherman, and Williamsville. Crop stress was extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions continued through August in Schuyler County. Despite monthly rainfall of 2 to 3 inches, crop stress remained extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions continued through August in Scott County. Only 1.53 of rain fell in Winchester, making it the 7th driest August on record. Crop stress was extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions continued through August in Shelby County. The flow along the Kaskaskia River at Cowden dropped into the 16th percentile. Due to the drought conditions, a ban on open burning remained in place across the county, while voluntary water restrictions were instituted in Shelbyville. Crop stress was extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions developed across Stark County on August 7th, but rainfall of 3 to 4 inches caused an improvement back to Severe Drought by the end of the month. Crop stress was extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions continued through August in Tazewell County. The flow along Fondulac Creek near East Peoria tied for the lowest on record. Due to monthly rainfall of 4 to 5 inches, officials lifted the ban on open burning: however, voluntary water restrictions remained in place for Groveland. Crop stress was extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions improved to Severe Drought during the month of August in Vermilion County. The flow along the Middle Fork of the Vermilion River above Oakwood dropped to the lowest on record. Despite recent rainfall that helped ease drought conditions somewhat, a mandatory water restriction was instituted in Sidell. Crop stress was extreme for both corn and soybeans.
Extreme Drought conditions improved to Severe Drought during the month of August in Woodford County. The flow along the Mackinaw River near Congerville dropped to the 9th lowest on record. Despite recent rainfall that helped ease drought conditions somewhat, a volunatry water restriction remained in place for El Paso. Crop stress was extreme for both corn and soybeans.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Illinois in 2012Every state in 2012This day in weather historyWarnings in Illinois, August 2012
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: 409494, 409495, 409496, 409497, 409498, 409500, 409501, 409502, 409503, 409504, 409505, 409506, 409507, 409509, 409510, 409511, 409512, 409513, 409514, 409516, 409517, 409519, 409520, 409521, 409522, 409523, 409524, 409525, 409526, 409527, 409528, 409529, 409530, 409531, 409532.