Tornadoes · United States · Illinois · 2011
EF1 tornado, Leesville to Hopkins Park, Illinois, May 25, 2011
From Leesville to Hopkins Park, this EF1 tornado ran 5.8 miles across Kankakee County on May 25, 2011, touching down at 9:04 AM CDT and reaching 50 yards wide. It killed nobody, and did $250,000 of property damage.
The rating scale
Tracks are drawn in the color of the rating. The Enhanced Fujita scale rates the damage rather than measuring the wind: the speeds are what that damage is taken to imply.
EF065 to 85 mph
Light damage. Surface peeled off some roofs, gutters and siding damaged, branches broken, shallow-rooted trees pushed over.
EF186 to 110 mphthis tornado
Moderate damage. Roofs badly stripped, mobile homes overturned or badly damaged, exterior doors lost, windows broken.
EF2111 to 135 mph
Considerable damage. Roofs torn off well-built houses, frame homes shifted on their foundations, mobile homes destroyed, large trees snapped or uprooted, cars lifted off the ground.
EF3136 to 165 mph
Severe damage. Whole stories of well-built houses destroyed, large buildings badly damaged, trains overturned, trees debarked, heavy cars lifted and thrown.
EF4166 to 200 mph
Devastating damage. Well-built houses leveled, structures with weak foundations moved some distance, cars thrown and large missiles generated.
EF5over 200 mph
Incredible damage. Strong frame houses swept off their foundations, car-sized missiles thrown more than 100 meters, steel-reinforced concrete badly damaged, high-rise buildings deformed.
Unrated
The survey recorded a tornado but could not put a number on it, most often because it crossed open country and damaged nothing a rating can be read from.
The record
- Rating
- EF1
- Date
- May 25, 2011
- Touchdown
- 9:04 AM CDT (14:04 UTC)
- Lifted
- 9:12 AM CDT (14:12 UTC)
- On the ground
- 8 minutes
- Path length
- 5.8 miles (9.3 km)
- Path width
- 50 yards (46 m)
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- $250,000
- County
- Kankakee County
- Touchdown point
- 41.023, -87.627
- Lift-off point
- 41.091, -87.562
- Record number
- 1105250804-01
What the Weather Service recorded
A line of thunderstorms moved across parts of northeast and eastern Illinois during the morning hours of May 25th producing a tornado near St. Anne as well as heavy rain and some flooding.
Tree damage was observed at multiple locations along the path of this tornado including snapped hardwood trees. Additional damage included snapped utility poles, roof and shingle damage to homes, overturned campers, and an attached garage removed from a home that was under construction. Two people reported watching this tornado as it just missed their property. Two buildings, built from concrete blocks, were destroyed near 11580E and 7000S. At 4702S and 14000E, storage sheds were destroyed and a metal grain bin was blown over. Shingles were also blown off the roof of a house.
From NOAA NCEI's Storm Events Database, the narrative the local forecast office wrote for Storm Data.
The warnings
No tornado warning for this county appears in the archive as in force at the moment the tornado touched down.
The county was under a tornado watch, issued at 10:46 UTC and running to 18:00 UTC.
| Issued (UTC) | Expired | Product | Office |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10:46 UTC | 18:00 UTC | Tornado Watch | LOT |
| 13:24 UTC | 14:23 UTC | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | LOT |
| 14:30 UTC | 20:30 UTC | Flood Advisory | LOT |
| 18:57 UTC | 03:51 UTC | Flash Flood Watch | LOT |
| 21:32 UTC | 02:22 UTC | Tornado Watch | LOT |
| 00:06 UTC | 06:00 UTC | Flood Advisory | LOT |
| 00:37 UTC | 01:30 UTC | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | LOT |
| 01:09 UTC | 06:53 UTC | Flash Flood Warning | LOT |
Every warning and watch covering the touchdown point that day, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service products. Lead time is measured from the issue of the warning in force to the touchdown time in the database, both of which were recorded to the minute by different people.
The forecast that day
The Storm Prediction Center had this point in a Slight Risk, with a 0.10 chance of a tornado within 25 miles, in the hatched area where significant tornadoes were expected. The outlook in force was issued at 12:55 UTC.
SPC's Day 1 convective outlook as it stood when the tornado began, read at the touchdown point. The same archive is on the radar archive.
The air that afternoon
The radiosonde launches on either side of the tornado, from the nearest station that was launching then, drawn and analyzed the way Storm Lab does: the same diagram, the same parcel and shear definitions SPC's mesoanalysis uses.
Lincoln, IL (KILX), 12:00Z
2.1 hours before the tornado, 132 km from the path. May 25, 2011.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 1832 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -18 J/kg
- Surface CAPE
- 736 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 561 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 40 kt
- 0-1 km bulk shear
- 51 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 253 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 222 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 1.6
- Supercell composite
- 10.1
- 0-3 km lapse rate
- 5.4 K/km
The surface observations
Kankakee (IKK), 21 km from the path, in the two hours either side.
| Time (UTC) | Temp (°F) | Dew point (°F) | Wind | Gust (kt) | Pressure (mb) | Weather |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12:15 UTC | 57.2 | 55.4 | 360° 3 kt | 1004.1 | +TSRA | |
| 12:35 UTC | 60.8 | 57.2 | 60° 9 kt | 1003.7 | -TSRA | |
| 12:55 UTC | 62.6 | 60.8 | 70° 7 kt | 1003 | VCTSBR | |
| 13:15 UTC | 64.4 | 62.6 | 0° 0 kt | 1002.7 | VCTSBR | |
| 13:35 UTC | 64.4 | 62.6 | 20° 4 kt | 1002.7 | TSBR | |
| 13:55 UTC | 64.4 | 62.6 | 290° 4 kt | 16 | 1003.7 | +TSRA |
| 14:15 UTC | 64.4 | 62.6 | 270° 12 kt | 16 | 1005.8 | TSRA |
| 14:35 UTC | 62.6 | 62.6 | 340° 5 kt | 1004.1 | -TSRA | |
| 14:55 UTC | 64.4 | 62.6 | 40° 4 kt | 1002.7 | ||
| 15:15 UTC | 66.2 | 62.6 | 50° 4 kt | 1002.7 | ||
| 15:35 UTC | 66.2 | 62.6 | 60° 3 kt | 1003 | ||
| 15:55 UTC | 68 | 64.4 | 60° 4 kt | 1002.4 |
From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of airport observations.
The radar
The Chicago radar (KLOT), 73 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the touchdown began at 14:03 UTC.
Open the radar archive at this moment, over the track
Reflectivity and velocity, decoded from the Level II archive in the browser. Volumes take a few seconds to open the first time.
What was reported nearby
Local storm reports within 60 km of the path, in the three hours either side.
| Time (UTC) | Report | Where | County | Remark |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12:45 UTC | HAIL 0.25 | 4 Wsw Bonfield | Kankakee, IL | |
| 13:51 UTC | HAIL 0.75 | Monee | Will, IL | |
| 14:00 UTC | HAIL 0.75 | Richton Park | Cook, IL | |
| 14:04 UTC | TORNADO | 4 E St. Anne | Kankakee, IL | TORNADO BEGAN AT 7000 S AND 12753 E AND ENDED AT 2500 S AND 16000 E. TORNADO WAS RATED EF1 WITH PATH LENGTH OF 6 MILES AND WIDTH OF ABOUT 50 YARDS. |
| 14:15 UTC | TORNADO | St. Anne | Kankakee, IL | HOUSE DAMAGED. |
| 14:19 UTC | HEAVY RAIN 1.04 | Peotone | Will, IL | IN PAST 2 HOURS. |
| 15:00 UTC | HEAVY RAIN 2.54 | 1 W Mokena | Will, IL | IN LAST 3 HOURS. MINOR FLOODING. |
| 15:30 UTC | HEAVY RAIN 2.26 | Peotone | Will, IL | SINCE 7AM. |
| 15:30 UTC | HEAVY RAIN 2.61 | 5 Ene Manhattan | Will, IL | RAIN FELL BETWEEN 730 AND 1030 AM. SOME MINOR FLOODING. |
| 16:23 UTC | HEAVY RAIN 1.25 | Park Forest | Cook, IL | SINCE THIS MORNING. |
From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service local storm reports.
This ground now
The live radar over the trackEvery 2011 tornado in IllinoisEvery tornado in Illinois since 1950Warnings in force in Illinois nowThe forecast where you are
The other tornadoes of May 25, 2011
93 more were confirmed in the United States that day.
| Date | Time | Rating | Where | Path (mi) | Width (yd) | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 25 | 1:30 AM CDT | EF1 | Webster, MO | 9.3 | 100 | $20,000 | ||
| May 25 | 7:35 AM CDT | EF1 | Macon, IL | 1.0 | 75 | $165,000 | ||
| May 25 | 7:39 AM CDT | EF1 | Macon, IL | 1.5 | 75 | $100,000 | ||
| May 25 | 9:13 AM CDT | EF0 | Newton, IN | 0.1 | 20 | $25,000 | ||
| May 25 | 9:19 AM CDT | EF2 | Newton, IN | 1.9 | 300 | $50,000 | ||
| May 25 | 9:24 AM CDT | EF1 | Jasper, IN | 2.9 | 100 | $500 | ||
| May 25 | 9:26 AM CDT | EF1 | Jasper, IN | 1.9 | 100 | $50,000 | ||
| May 25 | 10:45 AM EDT | EF0 | Pulaski, IN | 0.8 | 50 | |||
| May 25 | 10:45 AM CDT | EF0 | Miami, KS | 0.1 | 40 | $5,000 | ||
| May 25 | 11:10 AM CDT | EF0 | Johnson, KS | 0.7 | 60 | $10,000 | ||
| May 25 | 11:22 AM CDT | EF0 | Johnson, KS | 0.1 | 40 | |||
| May 25 | 11:35 AM CDT | EF0 | Cass, MO | 0.1 | 40 | |||
| May 25 | 11:38 AM CDT | EF0 | Johnson, KS | 0.1 | 40 | |||
| May 25 | 12:22 PM CDT | EF2 | Pettis, MO | 2.1 | 500 | 20 | $4.0 million | |
| May 25 | 12:33 PM CDT | EF0 | Clay, MO | 0.1 | 40 | |||
| May 25 | 12:45 PM CDT | EF0 | Clay, MO | 0.1 | 40 | |||
| May 25 | 12:52 PM CDT | EF0 | Pettis, MO | 0.1 | 40 | |||
| May 25 | 1:04 PM CDT | EF0 | Cooper, MO | 0.1 | 40 | |||
| May 25 | 1:07 PM CDT | EF0 | Lafayette, MO | 0.1 | 40 | |||
| May 25 | 2:15 PM CDT | EF1 | Montgomery, MO | 7.1 | 100 | |||
| May 25 | 3:26 PM EDT | EF0 | Van Wert, OH | 0.1 | 40 | |||
| May 25 | 2:56 PM CDT | EF1 | Oregon, MO | 2.5 | 100 | $20,000 | ||
| May 25 | 3:49 PM CDT | EF3 | Carter, MO | 47.4 | 1,200 | 2 | $800,000 | |
| May 25 | 4:13 PM CDT | EF1 | Jackson, AR | 5.5 | 500 | $40,000 | ||
| May 25 | 5:15 PM EDT | EF1 | Decatur, IN | 0.8 | 600 | $500,000 | ||
| May 25 | 5:20 PM EDT | EF1 | Decatur, IN | 0.1 | 400 | $250,000 | ||
| May 25 | 4:35 PM CDT | EF1 | Madison, MO | 5.5 | 40 | |||
| May 25 | 4:37 PM CDT | EF1 | Wayne, MO | 17.8 | 150 | $70,000 | ||
| May 25 | 4:44 PM CDT | EF0 | Carter, MO | 0.5 | 50 | $2,000 | ||
| May 25 | 4:45 PM CDT | EF1 | Des Moines, IA | 4.8 | 100 | $250,000 | ||
| May 25 | 4:46 PM CDT | EF1 | Madison, MO | 5.3 | 440 | |||
| May 25 | 4:47 PM CDT | EF1 | Madison, MO | 4.3 | 580 | |||
| May 25 | 4:51 PM CDT | EF0 | Perry, MO | 0.3 | 60 | $3,000 | ||
| May 25 | 4:58 PM CDT | EF0 | Ripley, MO | 0.7 | 50 | |||
| May 25 | 6:00 PM EDT | EF1 | Huron, OH | 8.0 | 50 | $250,000 | ||
| May 25 | 5:00 PM CDT | EF1 | Des Moines, IA | 3.6 | 50 | $50,000 | ||
| May 25 | 5:14 PM CDT | EF0 | Butler, MO | 0.7 | 40 | |||
| May 25 | 6:14 PM EDT | EF0 | Hardin, OH | 0.2 | 25 | |||
| May 25 | 5:26 PM CDT | EF1 | Bollinger, MO | 13.0 | 250 | $30,000 | ||
| May 25 | 6:06 PM CDT | EF0 | McLean, IL | 0.9 | 25 | $8,000 | ||
| May 25 | 6:09 PM CDT | EF1 | McLean, IL | 10.3 | 75 | $10,000 | ||
| May 25 | 7:10 PM EDT | EF0 | Montgomery, OH | 0.1 | 25 | $5,000 | ||
| May 25 | 6:18 PM CDT | EF1 | Cape Girardeau, MO | 2.1 | 250 | $20,000 | ||
| May 25 | 6:18 PM CDT | EF0 | St. Francis, AR | 1.1 | 100 | |||
| May 25 | 6:28 PM CDT | EF2 | Jefferson, IL | 13.5 | 250 | $4.0 million | ||
| May 25 | 6:30 PM CDT | EF0 | Scott, MO | 0.4 | 50 | $1,000 | ||
| May 25 | 7:30 PM EDT | EF0 | Summit, OH | 4.2 | 50 | $200,000 | ||
| May 25 | 6:39 PM CDT | EF1 | Union, IL | 2.0 | 125 | $150,000 | ||
| May 25 | 6:40 PM CDT | EF1 | Pulaski, IL | 5.5 | 250 | $50,000 | ||
| May 25 | 6:45 PM CDT | EF1 | Pulaski, IL | 10.0 | 120 | $40,000 | ||
| May 25 | 6:48 PM CDT | EF1 | Crittenden, AR | 2.5 | 100 | $500,000 | ||
| May 25 | 6:55 PM CDT | EF2 | Pulaski, IL | 19.9 | 325 | $255,000 | ||
| May 25 | 6:58 PM CDT | EF0 | Champaign, IL | 0.2 | 15 | $5,000 | ||
| May 25 | 7:58 PM EDT | EF3 | Lawrence, IN | 6.8 | 300 | $150,000 | ||
| May 25 | 5:08 PM PDT | EF1 | Glenn, CA | 21.6 | 120 | $200,000 | ||
| May 25 | 5:12 PM PDT | EF1 | Glenn, CA | 26.4 | 120 | $150,000 | ||
| May 25 | 7:18 PM CDT | EF1 | Clay, IL | 1.0 | 75 | $510,000 | ||
| May 25 | 7:35 PM CDT | EF0 | Richland, IL | 0.2 | 10 | |||
| May 25 | 7:57 PM CDT | EF2 | Crawford, IL | 5.5 | 200 | $920,000 | ||
| May 25 | 7:58 PM CDT | EF0 | Union Parish, LA | 5.5 | 150 |
What this means
Ratings are the survey's, read off the damage rather than measured; the rating scale is above. Tornado counts rise through the record as reporting improved, so a year in the 1950s is not comparable with one today except for the strongest tornadoes, which were always noticed.
Sources
NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database, 1950-2025, the official record kept by NOAA's Storm Prediction Center.