A cold front was moving through the region, triggering showers and thunderstorms. There were numerous reports of large hail, a tornado in Washington County Missouri and several reports of flash flooding.
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 LSX wrote it up.
A cold front was moving through the region, triggering showers and thunderstorms. There were numerous reports of large hail, a tornado in Washington County Missouri and several reports of flash flooding.
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 St. Louis, MO wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Apr 8, 6:29 AM CST, 4 hours 11 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED AVIATION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ST LOUIS MO 729 AM CDT Wed Apr 8 2015 .UPDATE: Issued at 647 AM CDT Wed Apr 8 2015 Update to mainly PoPs thru this morning. TSRA developed further S than prev thought, tho not entirely sure how this will impact the forecast for the rest of today. Ongoing storms shud continue to propagate ewd this morning. Current timing is to reach wrn CWA border around 15z. These storms shud weaken further ewd as the LLJ. However, some uncertainty remains exactly what these storms will do once they reach the sfc fnt. By the time the storms reach the sfc fnt, at least some insolation will have started. This may allow storms to persist ewd into the warm sector. Regardless, it still appears that as these storms move ewd thru the area, enuf recovery will be possible for the setup for storms late this afternoon and overnight. Tilly && .SHORT TERM: (Through Tonight) Issued at 336 AM CDT Wed Apr 8 2015 Unfortunately, mdl guidance is not as in sync as much of it was yesterday. This leads to a number of questions for the next 24 hrs. No one mdl soln really agrees with the going forecast, but a number of them hint at it in one way or another. The closest would probably be the HiResW-ARW soln. Sct TSRA across the sern portions of the CWA shud persist thru early morning and gradually dissipate after sunrise, or at the very least, move E out of the area. ACCAS developing along the fnt over ern KS and wrn MO shud develop into TSRA and move ENE into wrn/nrn portions of the CWA this morning and build sewd thru the morning and into the afternoon hrs. This cluster shud intensify as it approaches the region and encounters higher CAPE and deep layer shear. The primary threat with these storms will be large hail and heavy rainfall. If these storms do develop and track as expected, they will likely impact some of the same areas that received heavy rain yesterday. If this soln verifies, a Flash Flood Watch will be needed. Due to questions in timing and placement, have decided to hold off on a headline for now, but will monitor closely. These storms will likely leave behind outflow boundaries, which complicates the forecast for this afternoon and overnight. Expect storms to develop across sern KS and wrn MO this afternoon and propagate into the region either late this afternoon or early evening. Given the thermal and dynamic setup, expect initial mode to be supercells which shud continue into the CWA this evening. While the main focus for these storms is expected to be across the nrn half of the CWA, sfc boundaries may help focus storms further S, impacting already soggy areas as mentioned above. If the morning convection plays out as anticipated, and if storms this evening and overnight impact these same areas again, flooding may pose a significant threat. Still, with the questions mentioned above, will hold off on headlines. Storms shud be moving out of the region twd sunrise tomorrow, allowing the area to reset ahead of the approaching sfc low. More info to follow below. As for temps, continued warm trends, tho going forecast may be too warm today for ern portions of the CWA if storms develop as expected. That said, with sly flow and if storms can move out of the area quickly enuf, area may warm yet this afternoon. Tilly .LONG TERM: (Friday through Tuesday) Issued at 414 AM CDT Wed Apr 8 2015 Expect TSRA to be ongoing at the beginning of this period, but shud be moving newd out of the CWA early in the morning. This shud leave much of the morning and early afternoon for the area to recover ahead of the approaching cdfnt. The main threats for svr will depend upon storm mode, which is still questionable in different locations. Still, it appears to be an active period with ample svr potential. Storms shud translate ewd thru the afternoon and eve, and be E of the CWA by 06z Fri. Next chances for precip return Sat night thru Tues as a sfc fnt sets up across the region again. Have kept PoPs in the chance range for now despite somewhat good mdl agreement due to the closed low approaching the area. Continued with warm trends on Thurs, then cooler Fri. Temps shud moderate quickly with ample insolation. Trended twd a compromise thru the remainder of the forecast period with questions of precip timing. Tilly && .AVIATION: (For the 12z TAFs through 12z Thursday Morning) Issued at 648 AM CDT Wed Apr 8 2015 Busy complex low confidence fcst. There should be several waves of TSTMs thru the prd but Qs remain with regards to timing and location as well the CIG/VSBY fcst. There is an area of low pressure near w cntrl IL with a warm front extending to the east and a cold front to the SW to another low across OK. IFR conditions exist north of the front. Ongoing convection across wrn MO is fcst to weaken as it tracks east this mrng...but not sure how far east it will last. It is possible that these storms last thru the mrng and continue to percolate into the aftn and reach as far east as the STL metro area. The low in OK is fcst to move NE along the cold front to near KC by this evng and weaken while another more significant low dvlps across the cntrl high plains. This will lift the bndry north as a warm front into nthrn MO and cntrl IL by this evng. IFR/MVFR conditions should clear out of KCOU either late this mrng or early this aftn while KUIN may be stuck in IFR most of the day...potentially all day if the front never lifts north of the terminal. Another round of convection is expected to dvlp along the front across SE KS and SW MO this aftn and spread E/NE thru the evng. Again there are Qs about how far north this activity will make it. More SHRA/TSTM activity is expected along the front overnight. Tried to approximate this first round of convection and used VCTS to account for the rest of the potential precip. IFR conditions and hail are possible with the strongest cells. Specifics for KSTL: Several rounds of convection are possible thru the prd. Tried to account for the first batch currently ongoing across wrn MO. Beyond that seemed impractical to attempt to specify an exact time for thunder and used a VCTS ground to account for the threat. MVFR CIGs are possible but not likely. IFR conditions and hail will be possible under the stronger cores but obviously way too soon to include that level of detail. More storms are possible on Thursday. 2% && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS: Saint Louis 82 68 79 45 / 70 80 70 60 Quincy 76 63 74 41 / 70 80 70 20 Columbia 80 65 75 41 / 90 80 70 20 Jefferson City 80 66 76 41 / 80 80 70 30 Salem 80 67 77 47 / 60 80 70 70 Farmington 81 67 77 44 / 50 80 70 70 && .LSX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES: MO...NONE. IL...NONE. && WFO LSX
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ST LOUIS MO 454 AM CDT WED APR 8 2015 ILZ058>060-064-065-069-070-074-079-095>102-MOZ018-019-026-027- 034>036-041-042-047>052-059>065-072>075-084-085-099-091200- GREENE IL-MACOUPIN IL-MONTGOMERY IL-BOND IL-FAYETTE IL-CLINTON IL- MARION IL-WASHINGTON IL-RANDOLPH IL-ADAMS IL-BROWN IL-PIKE IL- CALHOUN IL-JERSEY IL-MADISON IL-ST. CLAIR IL-MONROE IL-KNOX MO- LEWIS MO-SHELBY MO-MARION MO-MONROE MO-RALLS MO-PIKE MO-BOONE MO- AUDRAIN MO-MONITEAU MO-COLE MO-OSAGE MO-CALLAWAY MO-MONTGOMERY MO- LINCOLN MO-GASCONADE MO-WARREN MO-ST. CHARLES MO-FRANKLIN MO- ST. LOUIS MO-ST. LOUIS CITY MO-JEFFERSON MO-CRAWFORD MO- WASHINGTON MO-ST. FRANCOIS MO-STE. GENEVIEVE MO-IRON MO- MADISON MO-REYNOLDS MO- 454 AM CDT WED APR 8 2015 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF EASTERN AND CENTRAL MISSOURI AS WELL AS WEST CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST ILLINOIS. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT THUNDERSTORMS ARE LIKELY ACROSS MUCH OF THE REGION TODAY AND TONIGHT. SOME OF THESE STORMS MAY BECOME SEVERE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING TORNADOES...LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS. LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL WILL ALSO BE POSSIBLE WITH THESE STORMS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY THUNDERSTORMS...SOME OF WHICH MAY BE SEVERE...ARE LIKELY OVER MUCH OF THE AREA THURSDAY AND THURSDAY EVENING. THE CHANCE FOR THUNDERSTORMS RETURNS SUNDAY THROUGH TUESDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTERS ARE REQUESTED TO REPORT ANY OBSERVED SEVERE WEATHER AS WELL AS RAINFALL AMOUNTS OVER ONE INCH THROUGH TONIGHT. TILLY
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ST LOUIS MO 925 AM CDT WED APR 8 2015 MOZ018-019-026-081500- KNOX MO-LEWIS MO-SHELBY MO- 925 AM CDT WED APR 8 2015 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SHELBY...SOUTHWESTERN LEWIS AND SOUTHERN KNOX COUNTIES UNTIL 1000 AM CDT... AT 921 AM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR WAS TRACKING A STRONG THUNDERSTORM NEAR MACON...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 55 MPH. HAIL UP TO THE SIZE OF PENNIES AND WIND GUSTS UP TO 40 MPH ARE EXPECTED WITH THIS STORM. LOCATIONS NEAR THE PATH OF THIS STORM INCLUDE... CLARENCE... SHELBYVILLE... PLEVNA... EMDEN... STEFFENVILLE... LA BELLE... THIS STORM MAY INTENSIFY...AND A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR THIS AREA. BE CERTAIN TO MONITOR LOCAL RADIO AND TV STATIONS...AS WELL AS LOCAL CABLE TV OUTLETS...FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS FROM THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE. MILLER
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ST LOUIS MO
1139 AM CDT WED APR 08 2015
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
1138 AM HAIL HICKORY HILL 38.40N 92.36W
04/08/2015 E0.25 INCH COLE MO TRAINED SPOTTER
&&
FUCHSThe St Louis radar (KLSX), 154 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 16:40 UTC.
13 hail, 4 flash flood, 1 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.
A wide swath of large hail fell over Cole County from the Hickory Hill/Eugene area to near St. Thomas. Golfball sized hail was reported in Eugene where some vehicles sustained dents from the hail. In Hickory Hill, two inch hail was reported.
A wide swath of golfball sized hail fell from 5 miles west of Linn to 4 miles southeast of Linn. However, two and a half inch hail was reported in Rich Fountain.
A wide swath of large hail from from Mount Sterling eastward to Rosebud. Baseball sized hail was reported in Mount Sterling, one inch hail was reported in Owensville, and one and a quarter inch hail was reported in Rosebud.
Large hail fell across Sullivan and Stanton. Most of the hail stones were between 1 and 3 inches. However, a few stones were up to 4 inches in diameter. A number of vehicles sustained major damage with broken windshields and large dents. Also, numerous homes sustained minor to moderate roof damage.
Another severe storm moved through Sullivan within 15 minutes of the more significant storm. Hail up to an inch in diameter was reported with this storm.
The tornado formed and caused damage on the west side of Potosi. Roof shingles were blown off several church buildings, trees were downed, and a mobile home used for storage was destroyed. The tornado moved east-southeast down High Street in Potosi causing roof damage to several businesses, downed trees, power lines and business signs. The tornado crossed Highway 21 and continued along Highway 8 causing tree damage in the Spring Town Road area. About a half mile east of the Potosi city limits the tornado destroyed a building at a saw mill along Highway 8. The tornado continued for about another half mile causing tree damage and then dissipated.
A slow moving supercell moved southeast through St. Francois County dumping very large hail along its path. The largest hail stones were 3 inches in diameter. Numerous cars sustained damage including broken windshields. Also, there was a lot of roof and siding damage to homes in the path of this storm in Bonne Terre, Desloge, Park Hills, Leadington, and Farmington.
Up to three inches of rain fell in a short amount of time causing flash flooding in the Park Hills area. Several roads had two feet of running water over them. Also, Highway O behind Mineral Area College was briefly closed due to running water from Koen Creek when it went over its banks.
Up to three inches of rain fell in a short amount of time causing flash flooding in Potosi. Mine A Breton Creek overflowed its banks in town onto Jefferson Street. Several water rescues had to be made in this area.
Up to three inches of rain fell into a short amount of time causing flash flooding. Several roads were flooded. Highway N just southwest of intersection with Minnith Road was washed out when Saline Creek overflowed its banks.
Up to two inches of rain fell in less than 2 hours causing flash flooding over northeastern Jefferson County. Several roads were flooded including Romaine Creek Road just southwest of intersection with Saline Road. A water rescue occurred in this area.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Missouri in 2015Every state in 2015This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Missouri, 2015Warnings in Missouri, April 2015
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: 580807, 580808, 580809, 580816, 580827, 580828, 580829, 588586, 588588, 588594, 588595, 588607, 588608, 588610, 588597, 588598, 588600, 588615.