A weak boundary triggered scattered showers across central Illinois during the afternoon and evening of May 23rd. one just north of Maquon in Knox County and another near Assumption in Christian 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.
A weak boundary triggered scattered showers across central Illinois during the afternoon and evening of May 23rd. Two brief landspout tornadoes occurred...one just north of Maquon in Knox County and another near Assumption in Christian County.
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 May 23, 2:01 PM CST, 1 hour 29 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Lincoln IL 301 PM CDT Tue May 23 2017 .SHORT TERM...(This evening through Wednesday) ISSUED AT 301 PM CDT Tue May 23 2017 An upper level system will continue to drop south into the TN valley by tomorrow afternoon. With this cyclonic flow remaining over the area tonight and tomorrow, scattered showers will continue over the entire CWA the next 24-36hrs. Isolated thunderstorms could be possible this evening, but lack of sunshine this afternoon is keeping instability down. Tomorrow looks like a better chance of isolated storms, but in the east during the early afternoon and then the whole area for the late afternoon. Temps remained on the cool side today and expect the same tomorrow given the continued cloud cover and precip. So looking for highs tomorrow only in the mid 60s. Overnight lows will drop into the 50s with the warmest temps of mid to upper 50s in east and southeast IL. && .LONG TERM...(Wednesday night through Tuesday) ISSUED AT 301 PM CDT Tue May 23 2017 As the upper level system begins to lift north into the OH valley, the chance of precip across the CWA will diminish and push eastward through Thursday. Isolated storms will be possible, but precip will mostly be light rain and rain showers Wed night and Thur. Temps will remain cool Wed night with Thur highs warming slightly with west central IL reaching into the low to mid 70s. There will be a break in the precip Thur night and early Fri morning, but this will be short-lived as sfc wave begins to move into the area Friday afternoon, bringing another around of showers and thunderstorms to central and southeast IL. Then the low pressure area of the system will move into central IL and across the state Sat through Sun. Additional showers and storms will be associated with this system Sat with things beginning to diminish Sunday afternoon through evening. This unsettled pattern will continue into Memorial Day but dry conditions are currently expected Monday night into Tuesday. Temps will finally warm back back up for the holiday weekend. && .AVIATION...(For the 18Z TAFS through 18Z Wednesday afternoon) Issued at 1244 PM CDT Tue May 23 2017 Rain continues to move through the area this afternoon and as it does, cigs will drop to IFR at PIA and BMI...and MVFR at SPI/DEC/CMI. Vis will also drop to around 4-5 miles when the heaviest rain will occur. There could be a break in the precip this evening...but will keep at least VCSH at all sites tonight. The true break in the precip will come during the early morning hours at all sites. However, some sites will still see IFR to MVFR clouds through tomorrow. Winds will be light and variable most of the period. && .ILX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NONE. && SHORT TERM...Auten LONG TERM...Auten AVIATION...Auten
Hazardous Weather Outlook National Weather Service Lincoln IL 337 PM CDT Tue May 23 2017 ILZ027>031-036-037-040-041-047>050-241100- Cass-Fulton-Knox-Marshall-Mason-Menard-Morgan-Peoria-Schuyler- Scott-Stark-Tazewell-Woodford- 337 PM CDT Tue May 23 2017 This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for portions of central Illinois and west central Illinois. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT... Isolated thunderstorms will continue through this evening: however, severe weather is not anticipated. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY... Scattered thunderstorms are possible Wednesday, especially during the afternoon and early evening hours. After a break on Thursday, thunderstorms are also possible Friday into Monday. Flooding on the Illinois River near Peoria will subside by Thursday, but is expected to continue downstream for at least several more days. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Spotter activation is not anticipated through tonight. ILZ038-042>046-051>057-061-241100- Champaign-Christian-Coles-De Witt-Douglas-Edgar-Logan-Macon- McLean-Moultrie-Piatt-Sangamon-Shelby-Vermilion- 337 PM CDT Tue May 23 2017 This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for portions of central Illinois and east central Illinois. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT... Isolated thunderstorms will continue through this evening: however, severe weather is not anticipated. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY... Scattered thunderstorms are possible Wednesday, especially during the afternoon and early evening hours. After a break on Thursday, thunderstorms are also possible Friday into Monday. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Spotter activation is not anticipated through tonight. ILZ062-063-066>068-071>073-241100- Clark-Clay-Crawford-Cumberland-Effingham-Jasper-Lawrence-Richland- 337 PM CDT Tue May 23 2017 This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for portions of east central Illinois and southeast Illinois. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT... Isolated thunderstorms will continue through this evening: however, severe weather is not anticipated. Minor flooding on the Little Wabash River near Clay City should subside later today. Flooding will continue on the Wabash River. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY.... Scattered thunderstorms are possible Wednesday, especially during the afternoon and early evening hours. After a break on Thursday, thunderstorms are also possible Friday into Monday. Flooding will continue for several more days along the Wabash River. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Spotter activation is not anticipated through tonight. Barnes
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LINCOLN IL
421 PM CDT TUE MAY 23 2017
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0410 PM FUNNEL CLOUD 1 SSW BARTONVILLE 40.62N 89.67W
05/23/2017 PEORIA IL 911 CALL CENTER
TRAINED SPOTTER REPORTED A COLD AIR FUNNEL SOUTH OF
BARTONVILLE.
&&
AUTENThe Lincoln radar (KILX), 73 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 21:30 UTC.
2 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.
A landspout tornado briefly touched down in an open field at 4:30PM CDT. No damage occurred.
A landspout tornado briefly touched down in an open field at 8:05PM CDT. No damage occurred.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Illinois in 2017Every state in 2017This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Illinois, 2017Warnings in Illinois, May 2017
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: 695608, 695609.