Well above normal April rainfall upstream along the Ohio River from East Central Missouri and Central Illinois to Iowa/Wisconsin resulted in river levels on the Mississippi River rising into minor flood at Cape Girardeau to end the month, with minor flooding continuing into May. Impacts were limited to bottomland agricultural areas.
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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.
Well above normal April rainfall upstream along the Ohio River from East Central Missouri and Central Illinois to Iowa/Wisconsin resulted in river levels on the Mississippi River rising into minor flood at Cape Girardeau to end the month, with minor flooding continuing into May. Impacts were limited to bottomland agricultural areas.
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 Apr 30, 1:39 AM CST, 2 hours 51 minutes earlier. Its key messages:
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Paducah KY 239 AM CDT Thu Apr 30 2026 .KEY MESSAGES... - Cooler temperatures are projected to remain through the weekend with Friday and Saturday around 10 degrees below normal; temperatures then moderate for the first half of next week. - A slight chance of showers is forecast in the north tonight, along with higher chances of showers in the north/east Sunday night, but more widespread shower/storm activity holds off until Tuesday-Wednesday. && .DISCUSSION... Issued at 238 AM CDT Thu Apr 30 2026 A broad area of troughing across most of the country will result in continued below normal temperatures through the weekend for the Quad State. Winds are generally light with northerly components through Saturday. Upper low pressure is positioned in Ontario with smaller disturbances rounding the base. A fairly moisture starved cold front tonight brings a slight chance of showers to the north. A second upper level disturbance moving through Saturday is generally considered dry in most models. A return to more southerly flow and the beginning of a warming trend commences Sunday. The NBM seems to be overly dismissive of rainfall potential Sunday night (10-25%), so PoPs have been adjusted upwards closer to the LREF (20-50%), though QPF only rises to around a tenth of an inch in the far north. A pattern shift early next week places high pressure in the southeast and tracks impulses through the middle of the country, joined by Gulf moisture, allowing for more widespread shower and thunderstorm activity during the Tuesday-Wednesday timeframe. Temperatures rise early next week, especially the lows, as breezes keep overnight temperatures elevated. Rainfall amounts around an inch are forecast, though adjustments are possible. && .AVIATION /00Z TAFS THROUGH 00Z THURSDAY/... Issued at 517 PM CDT Wed Apr 29 2026 Tranquil flight weather is expected as surface high pressure ridges overhead; winds/gusts relax tonight in response. Gridded time/height cross sections suggest some increase in mid-high bases tmrw during the planning phase hours of the forecast, but offers no impediment to a continued Visual Flight Rules environ. && .PAH WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... IL...None. MO...None. IN...None. KY...None. && DISCUSSION...ATL AVIATION...
Hazardous Weather Outlook National Weather Service Paducah KY 310 AM CDT Thu Apr 30 2026 ILZ075>078-080>094-INZ081-082-085>088-KYZ001>022-MOZ076-086-087- 100-107>112-114-010815- 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- 310 AM CDT Thu Apr 30 2026 /410 AM EDT Thu Apr 30 2026/ This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for portions of southern Illinois, southwest Indiana, western Kentucky, and southeast Missouri. .DAY ONE...Today and Tonight No hazardous weather is expected at this time. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Friday through Wednesday A few thunderstorms are forecast in the north Sunday night. Thunderstorm chances remain early next week with higher chances on Tuesday. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Spotter activation is not expected at this time. ATL
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Minor flooding began at the very end of April along the Mississippi River across from Cape Girardeau, with limited impacts to low-lying areas. Flooding continued into May.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Illinois in 2026Every state in 2026This day in weather historyWarnings in Illinois, April 2026
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: 1343939.