A mid-level trough over the mid Mississippi and lower Ohio Valleys promoted the development of scattered showers and thunderstorms. Some locally heavy rain caused isolated flooding problems.
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.
A mid-level trough over the mid Mississippi and lower Ohio Valleys promoted the development of scattered showers and thunderstorms. Some locally heavy rain caused isolated flooding problems.
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 18, 6:45 PM CST, 1 hour 15 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Paducah KY 745 PM CDT Fri May 18 2018 .UPDATE... Issued at 745 PM CDT Fri May 18 2018 Updated aviation discussion. && .SHORT TERM...(Tonight through Sunday night) Issued at 339 PM CDT Fri May 18 2018 The negatively tilted closed low centered just northwest of St. Louis Missouri, with an axis stretching down into the Missouri Bootheel at 230 pm CDT, will continue to slowly drift northeast this evening and overnight. The highest rain chances will continue to the east of the low/trough axis, where enhanced lift in the moist adiabatic environment will produce effective rainfall amounts with a minimum of 3/4 of an inch or higher per hour. Given the extremely isolated nature of the pockets of heavy rainfall, will just utilize hydrological advisories for local drainage/minor flooding issues. With the sharper vorticity gradients aloft, non-supercell based landspouts will be possible again, especially over southeast Missouri this afternoon and this evening. We have been carrying statements the last couple of days hinting at that potential. The 13km RAP and 12km NAM-WRF continue to perform rather will in placement and general intensity of afternoon convection within the favorable isentropic lift zone. With the loss of daytime heating, any convection should be limited to the very narrow zones of enhanced lift aloft overnight. With near calm and saturated condition at the surface, added a mention of fog for the western sections of the WFO PAH forecast area (mainly southeast MO and southwest IL) late this evening and overnight. A very narrow ridge will continue to move in behind the closed low tonight and Saturday, capping the coverage of convective activity across most of the WFO PAH forecast area on Saturday and Saturday evening. Worked to keep as much of the area dry as possible, limiting any spurious model generated pockets of rain chances. Rain chances will initially develop late Saturday night and early Sunday along an impressed surface (warm frontal) boundary along the interstate 64 corridor, then expand southward as diurnal heating generates scattered convection over the remainder of the area ahead of channeled vorticity in the southwest flow ahead of a closed low in eastern Nebraska and western Iowa. .LONG TERM...(Monday through Friday) Issued at 339 PM CDT Fri May 18 2018 Have rather low forecast confidence in the coverage and timing of the precipitation through the work week next week. The previously mentioned closed low over Nebraska and Iowa is forecast to move little on Monday, with minor ridging possible early in the day. The placement of the PoPs/Weather seem a little too far west into the WFO PAH forecast area, but for collaborative and regionally blended model guidance initialization purposes, left a low chance PoP across most of the area. There is a disparity among the ECMWF, GFS, and the Canadian medium range guidance on how dominant the ridge building will be along and west of the WFO PAH forecast area. The GFS and Canadian generate a low over the southeast U.S., southeast of the central U.S. ridge. With the significant uncertainty associated with this forecast low, leaned toward lesser PoPs/Weather for the latter half of the week. Temperatures were a blend of the regional model initialization, the national blend of models, and the Canadian guidance. && .AVIATION... Issued at 745 PM CDT Fri May 18 2018 As an upper low centered just to our northwest migrates east- northeastward, and a weak surface low over our eastern sections moves generally north overnight, most shower and tstm activity is expected to diminish in the evening hours, since much of it is diurnally-driven. However, better mid level vorticity will be concentrated in the eastern half of the region late in the night, and this may enable re-ignition of shower and tstm activity there, lingering well into the morning hours. As a result, there should be an accompanying decrease in cig heights to MVFR and possibly IFR mainly east of the MS River. Light winds overnight will be conducive to fog formation. Noticeably improved conditions will be noticed by late morning/afternoon Sat. && .PAH WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... IL...None. MO...None. IN...None. KY...None. && SHORT TERM...Smith LONG TERM...Smith AVIATION...DB
Hazardous Weather Outlook National Weather Service Paducah KY 857 PM CDT Fri May 18 2018 ILZ075>078-080>094-INZ081-082-085>088-KYZ001>022-MOZ076-086-087- 100-107>112-114-191000- 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- 857 PM CDT Fri May 18 2018 This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for portions of southern Illinois, southwest Indiana, western Kentucky, and southeast Missouri. .DAY ONE...Tonight A few thunderstorms will be possible over portions of the region through the remainder of the night. Sporadic lightning and a brief heavy downpour will be the primary concerns. Areas of fog, dense at times, will be possible throughout the region tonight. The fog will be most prevalent over southeast Missouri where less clouds are expected. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Saturday through Thursday Daily chances of thunderstorms are expected from mainly Sunday through Thursday. Locally heavy rain and lightning will be primary concerns. The probability of widespread hazardous weather is low. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Spotter activation is not anticipated. DRS/Smith
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY 423 PM CDT Fri May 18 2018 INZ081-082-085>088-KYZ007>022-190100- GIBSON-PIKE-POSEY-VANDERBURGH-WARRICK-SPENCER-LIVINGSTON-MARSHALL- CALLOWAY-CRITTENDEN-LYON-TRIGG-CALDWELL-UNION KY-WEBSTER-HOPKINS- CHRISTIAN-HENDERSON-DAVIESS-MCLEAN-MUHLENBERG-TODD- INCLUDING THE CITIES OF FORT BRANCH, PETERSBURG, POSEYVILLE, EVANSVILLE, BOONVILLE, ROCKPORT, SMITHLAND, BENTON, MURRAY, MARION, EDDYVILLE, CADIZ, PRINCETON, MORGANFIELD, DIXON, MADISONVILLE, HOPKINSVILLE, HENDERSON, OWENSBORO, CALHOUN, GREENVILLE, AND ELKTON 423 PM CDT Fri May 18 2018 ...Funnel Cloud Observed in Muhlenberg County... The atmosphere across west Kentucky and southwest Indiana through sunset is one that is favorable for the development of funnel clouds. A nearby low pressure system is the reason. In this environment, the funnel clouds can, but rarely do, touch down. Generally they remain aloft. Damage is uncommon. However in rare cases they can briefly extend to the ground and produce minor wind damage. DRS
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY
659 PM CDT FRI MAY 18 2018
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0655 PM FUNNEL CLOUD 2 S BOYLESTON 38.33N 88.44W
05/18/2018 WAYNE IL EMERGENCY MNGR
&&
SMITTYSPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PADUCAH KY 703 PM CDT Fri May 18 2018 ILZ075>078-080>091-190115- JEFFERSON-WAYNE IL-EDWARDS-WABASH-PERRY IL-FRANKLIN-HAMILTON- WHITE-JACKSON-WILLIAMSON-SALINE-GALLATIN-UNION-JOHNSON-POPE- HARDIN- INCLUDING THE CITIES OF MOUNT VERNON, FAIRFIELD, ALBION, MOUNT CARMEL, PINCKNEYVILLE, WEST FRANKFORT, MCLEANSBORO, CARMI, CARBONDALE, MURPHYSBORO, HERRIN, HARRISBURG, SHAWNEETOWN, JONESBORO, VIENNA, GOLCONDA, AND ELIZABETHTOWN 703 PM CDT Fri May 18 2018 ...Funnel Cloud Observed near Boyleston in Wayne County Illinois... The atmosphere across southern Illinois through sunset is one that is favorable for the development of funnel clouds. A nearby low pressure system is the reason. In this environment, the funnel clouds can, but rarely do, touch down. Generally they remain aloft. Damage is uncommon. However in rare cases they can briefly extend to the ground and produce minor wind damage.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Two vehicles were stranded in floodwater in rural areas south of Owensboro.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Kentucky in 2018Every state in 2018This day in weather historyWarnings in Kentucky, May 2018
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: 754722.