Isolated thunderstorms developed during the heat of the afternoon. The storms increased along a residual front or wind shift that settled into the very unstable air mass across the region.
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.
Isolated thunderstorms developed during the heat of the afternoon. The storms increased along a residual front or wind shift that settled into the very unstable air mass across the region. A couple of multicellular storms produced severe downburst 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 Aug 1, 1:54 PM CST, 1 hour 46 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY 254 PM CDT WED AUG 1 2012 .UPDATE... ISSUED AT 254 PM CDT WED AUG 1 2012 ADJUSTED THE FORECAST TO ACCOUNT FOR THE LOCATION OF THE OLD BOUNDARY DELINEATED WELL BY RECENTLY DEVELOPED CONVECTION ACROSS THE PENNYRILE REGION OF WEST KENTUCKY. SPC HAS JUST ISSUED A WATCH WHICH WILL LIKELY NOT LAST LONG IN OUR FORECAST AREA...AS THE CURRENT STORMS SHOULD MOVE SOUTH OUT OF THE AREA IN THE NEXT HOUR OR TWO. && .SHORT TERM...(THIS EVENING THROUGH FRIDAY NIGHT) ISSUED AT 239 PM CDT WED AUG 1 2012 CONTINUE TO HAVE LITTLE CONFIDENCE IN TEMPERATURE AND DEWPOINT FORECASTS IN THE NEAR TERM. WINDS ARE FORECAST TO TURN AROUND TO THE SOUTH OR SOUTHEAST ACROSS THE AREA THURSDAY...WHICH SHOULD ONLY PULL HIGHER DEWPOINTS BACK ACROSS THE ENTIRE AREA THROUGH THE DAY. THE ISSUE IS HOW HOT WILL WE GET. FIGURE THAT UPPER 90S TO AROUND A HUNDRED WILL BE SAFE EAST OF THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER...BUT CLOUDS MAY BE ON THE INCREASE ACROSS SOUTHEAST MISSOURI THROUGH THE DAY...AS THE MODELS TRY TO BRING SOME QPF INTO THAT AREA IN THE AFTERNOON. WILL SHAVE OFF A FEW DEGREES OVER THERE. WILL ONCE AGAIN HAVE HEAT INDICES IN THE 100 TO 105 RANGE OVER THE WESTERN HALF OF THE AREA THURSDAY AFTERNOON...AND WILL THEREFORE HOLD OFF ON AN ADVISORY AT THIS TIME. MOST MODELS BRING A WEAK MID/UPPER LEVEL IMPULSE EASTWARD THROUGH THE AREA THURSDAY NIGHT INTO FRIDAY. KEPT POPS IN THE 40-50 PERCENT RANGE FOR THIS SYSTEM...WITH AN EMPHASIS WEST THURSDAY NIGHT AND EAST FRIDAY. DO NOT KNOW HOW MUCH INSTABILITY WILL BUILD UP FRIDAY WITH THE INCREASED CLOUDS...BUT BEST GUESS IS HEAT INDICES IN THE 100 TO 105 AT LEAST OVER THE WEST AGAIN ON FRIDAY. THEREFORE WOULD NOT BE SURPRISED TO SEE A STRAY SEVERE STORM FRIDAY AFTERNOON. .LONG TERM...(SATURDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY) ISSUED AT 254 PM CDT WED AUG 1 2012 NO BIG CHANGES ANTICIPATED TO THE CURRENT GRIDS...HOWEVER THERE WILL BE A SIGNIFICANT CHANGE IN THE WEATHER IN THE EXTENDED WITH GOOD CHANCE OF SIGNIFICANT RAIN AND COOLER TEMPS THROUGH THE WEEKEND. AT FIRST GLANCE THE LATEST RUN OF THE GFS GIVES THE APPEARANCE OF SOME CONVECTIVE FEEDBACK SATURDAY...HOWEVER ALTHOUGH POSITIONING VARIES THE ECMWF SUPPORTS THIS SCENARIO WITH LIMITED SUPPORT FROM THE LATEST NAM12 RUN. THERE IS ALSO GOOD AGREEMENT ON A COLD FRONT MOVING INTO AND STALLING OVER THE AREA BY SUNDAY. THIS FRONT HAS UPPER LEVEL SUPPORT AS A SHORT WAVE ROTATES THROUGH THE AREA SUNDAY. CURRENT TIMING WOULD SUGGEST BEST CHANCE NW OF THE OHIO RIVER SUNDAY MORNING AND SOUTH OF THE RIVER IN THE AFTERNOON. SO WOULD EXPECT THE BEST QPF TO BE IN CONJUNCTION WITH MAX HEATING IN THE AFTERNOON SOUTH OF THE RIVER. NEXT WEEK WE BEGIN TO WARM BACK THROUGH THE 90S AGAIN AS THE UPPER LEVEL RIDGE MEANDERS BACK INTO THE HEARTLAND. && .AVIATION...(FOR THE 18Z TAFS THROUGH 18Z THURSDAY AFTERNOON) ISSUED AT 1236 PM CDT WED AUG 1 2012 WILL NEED A VFR CEILING AND VCSH AT KCGI INTO THE MIDDLE OF THE AFTERNOON...BUT FEEL THAT THE CLOUDS SHOULD SCATTER LATER THIS AFTERNOON. KPAH WILL GET A GLANCING BLOW FROM THE MID-LEVEL CLOUD SHIELD TRYING TO MOVE SOUTHEAST OUT OF MISSOURI. WINDS SHOULD BE NORTH UNDER 10KTS AT KEVV AND KOWB THIS AFTERNOON...WHILE SOUTH OF THE BOUNDARY WEST OR NORTHWEST WINDS UNDER 10KTS WILL PREVAIL. KCGI WILL BE CLOSE TO THE BOUNDARY...SO THEY MAY BECOME MORE NORTHERLY AT SOME POINT THIS AFTERNOON. WINDS SHOULD GO CALM TONIGHT AT ALL SITES. THE BEST MOISTURE WILL BE OVER KCGI...WHERE SOME MVFR FOG DEVELOPMENT WILL BE POSSIBLE TOWARD SUNRISE. OTHERWISE A LIGHT SOUTH OR SOUTHEAST WIND IS EXPECTED TO DEVELOP THROUGHOUT THE AREA BY MID-MORNING THURSDAY. && .PAH WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... IL...NONE. MO...NONE. IN...NONE. KY...NONE. && UPDATE...DRS SHORT TERM...DRS LONG TERM....KH AVIATION...DRS
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY 311 PM CDT WED AUG 1 2012 ILZ075>078-080>094-INZ081-082-085>088-KYZ001>022-MOZ076-086-087- 100-107>112-114-021000- 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- 311 PM CDT WED AUG 1 2012 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHERN ILLINOIS...SOUTHWEST INDIANA...WESTERN KENTUCKY AND SOUTHEAST MISSOURI. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT A FEW SEVERE STORMS ARE EXPECTED IN AREAS ALONG AND SOUTH OF A LINE FROM SALEM TO ELKTON KENTUCKY LATE THIS AFTERNOON...WHERE A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH HAS BEEN ISSUED. LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS WILL BE POSSIBLE...ALONG WITH LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL AND DEADLY LIGHTNING. OTHER STORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE ALONG AND SOUTH OF A LINE FROM PERRYVILLE MISSOURI TO EDDYVILLE ILLINOIS. A STRAY STRONG TO SEVERE STORM CANNOT BE RULED OUT IN THIS AREA LATE THIS AFTERNOON. ALL OF THE STORMS SHOULD MOVE TO THE SOUTH. THE STORMS SHOULD CLEAR WEST KENTUCKY BY 7 PM...BUT A FEW STORMS COULD LINGER INTO THE EVENING IN SOUTHEAST MISSOURI. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY A CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS IS FORECAST EACH DAY FROM THURSDAY THROUGH SUNDAY...WITH THE BEST CHANCES ON FRIDAY AND AGAIN ON SUNDAY. A STRAY SEVERE STORM WILL BE POSSIBLE EACH AFTERNOON AND EVENING. HEAT INDICES WILL CONTINUE TO CLIMB INTO THE 100 TO 105 RANGE OVER PORTIONS OF THE AREA EACH DAY THROUGH SATURDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS REQUESTED OVER THE SOUTHERN PENNYRILE AND LAKES AREAS OF WEST KENTUCKY THIS AFTERNOON. DRS
The Paducah radar (KPAH), 40 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 21:38 UTC.
2 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Tree limbs were blown down near the Cache River State Natural Area.
Trees and power lines were blown down. A couple of homes were damaged.
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: 398245, 398246.