During the afternoon, multi-cell thunderstorm clusters developed along a warm front that was oriented from west to east across southern Indiana. Surface dew points near and south of the front were in the lower 70's, which contributed to strong instability.
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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 PAH wrote it up.
During the afternoon, multi-cell thunderstorm clusters developed along a warm front that was oriented from west to east across southern Indiana. Surface dew points near and south of the front were in the lower 70's, which contributed to strong instability. Thunderstorm clusters moved eastward along the warm front, but they also developed southward into the strongest instability. One of the storms produced a funnel cloud in the Henderson area.
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 May 11, 12:10 PM CST, 4 hours 43 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Paducah KY 110 PM CDT WED MAY 11 2016 .SHORT TERM...(This evening through Friday night) Issued at 108 PM CDT Wed May 11 2016 The old boundary left over from last night's convection runs from near KMVN to just south of KOWB and is likely to be a focus for thunderstorm development. Meanwhile, a line of thunderstorms moving into the KSTL metro area will push eastward into northern portions of southern Illinois and eventually intersect the old boundary. A severe thunderstorm watch has been issued until 00Z for our northern 8 counties of southern Illinois. The flow aloft is rather weak, so individual storms should be pulsy, but the amount of instability available may allow them to briefly reach severe levels with damaging winds and large hail possible. However, the line moving out of KSTL may develop a cold pool, which could lead to a larger-scale damaging wind threat in the Watch area. After sunset, loss of diurnal fuel and warm sector lifting north, should see more widely scattered/less amplified cells...at least until late tonight-early tmrw, when cold front makes approach. Pinwheel jet energy will interact during daytime hours tmrw, and reinitiate storm/svr chances, slgt risk shifting eastward across remainder of fa. Cold fropa occurs tmrw evening, and convection chances end with it. Thu night thru Fri then looking cooler/drier per post frontal airmass. Warm/soupy before. Troffing Ohio valley long wave will bring a smallish chance of pcpn in again Friday night, as another piece of energy rounds base of trof. While instability parameters and moisture are lacking, nw flow/upper pva inducement may lead to a clap of thunder or at least its mention in forecast per collab pic. .LONG TERM...(Saturday through Wednesday) Issued at 1256 PM CDT Wed May 11 2016 Long term pattern transition will bring some changes to the extended. Surface High pressure under nwlys aloft yield a still cooler/drier Saturday. But long range modeling of height falls out west, combined with transitioning Great Lakes Low (pattern change), mean upper flow will be backing and becoming increasingly active with time for Mid Ms Valley. We'll see pops enter forecast southwest to northeast by Sunday, though we'll lay off thunder mention til better/deeper destabilization occurs Sunday night into Monday. Monday-Wednesday then looks like an active/wet pattern, as mean southwest U.S. trof shoots pieces of energy across southern Plains and lower to mid Ms valley with time. Pops ramp up to high chance or likely cats thru this period with several periods of showers/storms and potentially decent QPF setting up in addition to strong/possibly svr storm chances. && .AVIATION... Issued at 1256 PM CDT Wed May 11 2016 Conditional forecast of Thunderstorms is best at KEVV and KOWB, but not so much so farther west. A cold front will approach the area near the end of the forecast, and there is a fairly strong signal for IFR/LIFR ceilings to develop ahead of it, possibly with some fog as well. && .PAH Watches/Warnings/Advisories... IL...None. MO...None. IN...None. KY...None. &&
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY 340 PM CDT WED MAY 11 2016 ILZ075>078-080>094-INZ081-082-085>088-KYZ001>022-MOZ076-086-087- 100-107>112-114-121000- JEFFERSON-WAYNE IL-EDWARDS-WABASH-PERRY IL-FRANKLIN-HAMILTON- WHITE-JACKSON-WILLIAMSON-SALINE-GALLATIN-UNION-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- 340 PM CDT WED MAY 11 2016 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHERN ILLINOIS...SOUTHWEST INDIANA...WESTERN KENTUCKY AND SOUTHEAST MISSOURI. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT A CLUSTER OF THUNDERSTORMS WILL PUSH EASTWARD ALONG THE I-64 CORRIDOR OF SOUTHERN ILLINOIS AND SOUTHWEST INDIANA THIS AFTERNOON. VERY LARGE HAIL...DAMAGING WINDS...TORRENTIAL RAINS...AND EVEN ISOLATED TORNADOES WILL BE POSSIBLE WITH THESE STORMS. OTHER STRONG TO SEVERE STORMS MAY MOVE EASTWARD INTO SOUTHEAST MISSOURI AND THE REMAINDER OF SOUTHERN ILLINOIS LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND THIS EVENING. LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS WILL BE THE PRIMARY CONCERNS WITH THIS ACTIVITY. MORE THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO MOVE EASTWARD INTO THE REGION LATER TONIGHT. AT THIS TIME...SEVERE WEATHER CANNOT BE RULED OUT...BUT LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL MAY CREATE SOME FLOODING ISSUES...ESPECIALLY IN AREAS THAT RECEIVED HEAVY RAINS LAST NIGHT AND THIS AFTERNOON. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY SCATTERED TO NUMEROUS THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED ACROSS THE REGION THURSDAY. A FEW SEVERE STORMS WITH LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS WILL BE POSSIBLE PRIMARILY OVER WEST KENTUCKY IN THE AFTERNOON. LOCALIZED HEAVY RAINFALL AND FLOODING ISSUES WILL ALSO BE POSSIBLE. A SMALL CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS IS FORECAST MAINLY ACROSS THE NORTHERN HALF OF THE REGION FRIDAY NIGHT. AT THIS TIME...SEVERE WEATHER IS NOT EXPECTED. A CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS RETURNS TO THE REGION SUNDAY NIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY. AT THIS TIME...SEVERE WEATHER IS NOT ANTICIPATED. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTERS ACTIVATION IS REQUESTED TO THE NORTH OF A PINCKNEYVILLE ILLINOIS TO ROCKPORT INDIANA LINE THIS AFTERNOON. ACTIVATION CANNOT BE RULED OUT FARTHER SOUTH THROUGH SOUTHERN ILLINOIS AND SOUTHEAST MISSOURI LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND THIS EVENING. DRS
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY
525 PM CDT WED MAY 11 2016
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0518 PM HAIL DU QUOIN 38.00N 89.24W
05/11/2016 E1.50 INCH PERRY IL LAW ENFORCEMENT
&&
RSTPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY
537 PM CDT WED MAY 11 2016
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0515 PM HAIL 7 E DU QUOIN 38.00N 89.11W
05/11/2016 E1.25 INCH FRANKLIN IL TRAINED SPOTTER
QUARTER TO HALF DOLLAR SIZE HAIL
&&
RSTPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY
540 PM CDT WED MAY 11 2016
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0532 PM HAIL OWENSVILLE 38.27N 87.69W
05/11/2016 E1.00 INCH GIBSON IN TRAINED SPOTTER
SOME LARGE TREE LIMBS DOWN
&&
RSTPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY
549 PM CDT WED MAY 11 2016
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0540 PM HEAVY RAIN OWENSVILLE 38.27N 87.69W
05/11/2016 M3.00 INCH GIBSON IN TRAINED SPOTTER
3 INCHES OF RAIN AND A FEW STREETS UNDER WATER IN
OWENVILLE.
&&
RSTPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY
551 PM CDT WED MAY 11 2016
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0538 PM TSTM WND GST 2 SE EVANSVILLE 37.96N 87.52W
05/11/2016 E60 MPH VANDERBURGH IN TRAINED SPOTTER
50 TO 60 MPH WINDS IN ANGEL MOUNDS
&&
RSTPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY
553 PM CDT WED MAY 11 2016
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0535 PM TSTM WND GST 2 SW BELKNAP 37.96N 87.71W
05/11/2016 E50 MPH POSEY IN EMERGENCY MNGR
SMALL LIMBS DOWN
&&
RSTThe Evansville,IN radar (KVWX), 51 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 22:55 UTC.
1 funnel cloud. Local standard time, as filed.
A trained spotter near the intersection of U.S. Highway 41 and the Audubon Parkway sighted a funnel cloud.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Kentucky in 2016Every state in 2016This day in weather historyWarnings in Kentucky, May 2016
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: 628818.