An approaching cold front triggered scattered thunderstorms across central Illinois during the afternoon of August 26th. One of the cells produced damaging wind gusts in Astoria in Fulton County.
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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 approaching cold front triggered scattered thunderstorms across central Illinois during the afternoon of August 26th. One of the cells produced damaging wind gusts in Astoria in Fulton County. Showers and thunderstorms continued into the evening hours, producing 2 to 3 inches of rain along and north of the I-74 corridor.
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 Aug 26, 1:16 PM CST, 2 hours 4 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LINCOLN IL 216 PM CDT SUN AUG 26 2012 .DISCUSSION... ISSUED 205 PM CDT SUN AUG 26 2012 SHOWERS HAVE BEEN CONFINED MAINLY ACROSS THE NORTHERN THIRD OF THE FORECAST AREA INTO EARLY THIS AFTERNOON...WHILE FURTHER TO THE EAST AND SOUTH OF THE RAIN...TEMPERATURES HAVE WARMED WELL INTO THE 80S. SURFACE DEW POINTS HAVE CLIMBED INTO THE UPPER 60S TO LOWER 70S WITH A RATHER GUSTY SOUTH WIND IN AREAS THAT WERE SEEING SOME SUNSHINE... MAINLY ACRS THE SOUTHEAST HALF. SHORT TERM...TONIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY NIGHT COVERAGE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS INTO MONDAY MORNING THE MAIN FORECAST CHALLENGE DURING THIS PERIOD ALONG WITH TEMPERATURES. SHORTWAVE TROF TO OUR WEST AND ASSOCIATED WEAK SURFACE WAVE WILL PUSH THROUGH THE AREA OVERNIGHT BRINGING PERIODS OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WITH THE HIGHEST POPS AND QPF IN AREAS MAINLY NORTH OF A TAYLORVILLE TO PARIS LINE. WITH PRECIPITABLE WATER VALUES WELL OVER 2 INCHES THRU LATE THIS EVENING...AN ADDITIONAL ONE HALF TO ONE INCH WILL BE POSSIBLE...WITH LOCALLY HIGHER AMOUNTS WHERE CONVECTION OCCURS. FORECAST SOUNDINGS STILL INDICATING MIXED LAYER CAPES OF AROUND 1500 J/KG INTO EARLY THIS EVENING...SO THERE WILL BE THE POTENTIAL FOR A STRONGER STORM WHICH MAY PRODUCE SOME GUSTY WINDS...BUT WITH RATHER WEAK LAPSE RATES AND A SATURATED SOUNDING UP TO 25000 FEET...FEEL THE MAIN THREAT...IF YOU WANT TO CALL IT THAT...WILL BE FROM TORRENTIAL DOWNPOURS WITH SOME OF THE STRONGER STORMS THIS EVENING. THE RAIN THREAT WILL BEGIN TO GRADUALLY SHIFT EAST AND SOUTH AS THE NIGHT WEARS ON WITH THE UPPER LEVEL SUPPORT AND LOW LEVEL FORCING TRACKING INTO INDIANA IN THE 12Z-15Z TIME FRAME ON MONDAY. WITH THE WEAK FRONT/WIND SHIFT SLOWLY EDGING INTO SE IL BY AFTERNOON...WILL CONTINUE TO HOLD ON TO LOW CHANCE POPS IN THAT AREA UNTIL 00Z TUE. HIGH PRESSURE WILL THEN TAKE HOLD OF OUR WEATHER LATE MONDAY NIGHT AND TUESDAY BRINGING WARM BUT LESS HUMID WEATHER TO OUR AREA FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE FORECAST PERIOD. LONG TERM...THURSDAY THROUGH SUNDAY AFFECTS OF ISAAC THIS FAR NORTH...IF ANY...STILL VERY MUCH IN DOUBT LATE THIS WEEK. UPPER TROF THAT SWINGS THRU OUR AREA ON MONDAY LOOKED TO BE A FACTOR WITH RESPECT TO RECURVING THE SYSTEM TO THE NE INTO THE APPALACHIANS BY THE MIDDLE OF THE WEEK BUT THERE STILL ARE SOME MODELS SUGGESTING THE TROF WILL HAVE VERY LITTLE IF ANY AFFECT ON THE SYSTEM. UPPER LEVEL RIDGING WILL BUILD ACRS OUR AREA IN THE WAKE OF THE EARLY WEEK TROF AND A FEW MODELS CONTINUE A MORE NNW DRIFT TO THE SYSTEM INTO THE RIDGING ACRS THE CENTRAL U.S. BY LATE IN THE WEEK. THE OFFICIAL TRACK HAS THE REMNANTS MOVING INTO NORTHERN MISSISSIPPI JUST AFTER 12Z FRIDAY...A TREND TO THE WEST AND NORTH FROM PREVIOUS FORECASTS. WILL KEEP ANY "MENTIONABLE" RAIN CHANCES CONFINED TO THE SOUTHEAST HALF OF THE FORECAST AREA FRIDAY THRU SATURDAY. OTHERWISE...THE MAIN CONCERN WILL BE TEMPERATURES...ESP IF THE REMNANTS OF ISAAC PUSH FURTHER NORTH INTO THE OHIO VALLEY. SHOULD SEE ABOVE NORMAL READINGS TO START WITH ON THURSDAY...AND THEN A SLIGHT DOWNWARD TREND...ESP ACRS THE EAST...AS CLOUD COVER INCREASES. SMITH && .AVIATION... ISSUED 1250 PM CDT SUN AUG 26 2012 CEILINGS WILL REMAIN IN THE VFR CATEGORY AT THE I-72 TERMINALS THIS AFTERNOON...WHILE MVFR/IFR CEILINGS PERSIST AT BOTH KPIA AND KBMI. ONGOING SHOWERS ALONG/WEST OF THE ILLINOIS RIVER WILL CONTINUE TO IMPACT KPIA INTO EARLY EVENING...WHILE CONVECTIVE DEVELOPMENT FURTHER EAST STILL REMAINS IN QUESTION. WITH PARTIAL SUNSHINE ALLOWING FOR MODEST DESTABILIZATION EAST OF THE ILLINOIS RIVER...IT APPEARS SCATTERED SHOWERS/STORMS WILL DEVELOP THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. DUE TO UNCERTAINTY CONCERNING EXACT AREAL COVERAGE AND TIMING...HAVE ONLY INCLUDED VCTS AT THE REMAINING TERMINALS. ANY CONVECTION THAT DEVELOPS WILL TEND TO PUSH EAST AND SOUTH OF THE TAF SITES LATER THIS EVENING AS A COLD FRONT DROPS INTO THE REGION. WINDS WILL BECOME LIGHT/VARIABLE IN THE VICINITY OF THE FRONT...POTENTIALLY LEADING TO IFR CEILINGS AND AREAS OF FOG AT KPIA AND KBMI AFTER 08Z. FURTHER SOUTH...WILL KEEP CEILINGS IN THE MVFR CATEGORY THROUGH THE NIGHT. SKIES WILL CLEAR FROM NORTH TO SOUTH ACROSS THE AREA BY MONDAY MORNING...AS WINDS SWITCH TO THE NORTH BEHIND THE DEPARTING FRONT. BARNES && .ILX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NONE. &&
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LINCOLN IL 330 PM CDT SUN AUG 26 2012 ILZ027>031-036>038-040>043-047>053-271100- CASS-CHRISTIAN-DE WITT-FULTON-KNOX-LOGAN-MACON-MARSHALL-MASON- MCLEAN-MENARD-MORGAN-PEORIA-SANGAMON-SCHUYLER-SCOTT-STARK- TAZEWELL-WOODFORD- 330 PM CDT SUN AUG 26 2012 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL ILLINOIS. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT WIDELY SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE TONIGHT...AS A COLD FRONT DROPS SOUTHWARD INTO THE AREA. SEVERE WEATHER IS NOT EXPECTED. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED THROUGH TONIGHT. ILZ044>046-054>057-061>063-066>068-071>073-271100- CHAMPAIGN-CLARK-CLAY-COLES-CRAWFORD-CUMBERLAND-DOUGLAS-EDGAR- EFFINGHAM-JASPER-LAWRENCE-MOULTRIE-PIATT-RICHLAND-SHELBY- VERMILION- 330 PM CDT SUN AUG 26 2012 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL ILLINOIS...EAST CENTRAL ILLINOIS AND SOUTHEAST ILLINOIS. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT WIDELY SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE TONIGHT...AS A COLD FRONT DROPS SOUTHWARD INTO THE AREA. SEVERE WEATHER IS NOT EXPECTED. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY A FEW THUNDERSTORMS WILL LINGER INTO MONDAY...HOWEVER NO SEVERE WEATHER IS EXPECTED. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED THROUGH TONIGHT. BARNES
The Lincoln radar (KILX), 87 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 21:22 UTC.
1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Numerous trees and tree branches were blown down in Astoria. In addition, two light-weight open-ended vehicle shelters were flipped.
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: 402084.