Active spring pattern across the center of our nation with several episodes of severe weather and heavy rainfall expected into next week. The potential for very large hail, long track tornadoes, severe wind gusts, frequent cloud to ground lightning strikes and flash flooding are in the outlook. Furthermore, dangerous early season heat wave continues for the Gulf Coast states into early next week. Read More >
A series of severe thunderstorms produced tornadoes, large hail, and damaging winds across central Illinois on May 3rd. Preliminary information regarding the event can be found on the "Reports" tab below. The meteorological summary and event photos will be updated over the next few days.
Details regarding the tornadoes that occurred across central Illinois on May 3rd can be seen below. A list of all severe weather reports (including hail and damaging wind) is included after the damage survey information.
811
NOUS43 KILX 281829
PNSILX
ILZ027>031-036>038-040>057-061-261200-
Public Information Statement
National Weather Service Lincoln IL
129 PM CDT Sat Jun 28 2025
...NWS Damage Survey for 06/18/2025| Tornado Event - Update #4...
.Update...
After review of storm spotter pictures and video, another brief tornado
touch down has been identified to have occurred Wednesday, June 18th,
in Cass County. This brings the total number of tornadoes to have occurred
in central Illinois on June 18 to 14; 1 EF-2, 7 EF-1s, 2 EF-0s, and 5 EF-Us.
.Overview...
A Mesoscale Convective Vortex (MCV), leftover from overnight
thunderstorms across Missouri, moved into central Illinois
around midday on Wednesday, June 18th. 14 tornadoes have been
identified near the track of this feature during the midday and
early afternoon hours.
.Glasgow...
Rating: EFU
Estimated Peak Wind: N/A
Path Length /statute/: 1.01 miles
Path Width /maximum/: 10 yards
Fatalities: 0
Injuries: 0
Start Date: 06/18/2025
Start Time: 11:30 AM CDT
Start Location: 2 ENE Montezuma / Scott County / IL
Start Lat/Lon: 39.5648 / -90.5376
End Date: 06/18/2025
End Time: 11:32 AM CDT
End Location: 3 NE Montezuma / Scott County / IL
End Lat/Lon: 39.5792 / -90.5337
Survey Summary:
Sentinel satellite data showed a narrow tornado touched down in a
farm field north of Montezuma Rd. and east of county road 600E.
It moved northeast about a mile and caused crop damage. A larger
area of wind damage occurred at the end of the track near Big
Swan Road.
.South Jacksonville...
Rating: EF0
Estimated Peak Wind: 80 mph
Path Length /statute/: 4.27 miles
Path Width /maximum/: 80 yards
Fatalities: 0
Injuries: 0
Start Date: 06/18/2025
Start Time: 11:53 AM CDT
Start Location: 3 ESE Lynnville / Morgan County / IL
Start Lat/Lon: 39.6636 / -90.2933
End Date: 06/18/2025
End Time: 11:59 AM CDT
End Location: 1 WNW South Jacksonville / Morgan County / IL
End Lat/Lon: 39.715 / -90.2497
Survey Summary:
This tornado touched down near the intersection of US-67 and Old
Airport Road, crossing I-72 about 3/4 mile east of exit 60.
Damage was mainly to tree branches along its path. It lifted just
north of Diamond Grove Cemetery.
.Lynnville...
Rating: EF1
Estimated Peak Wind: 100 mph
Path Length /statute/: 0.97 miles
Path Width /maximum/: 50 yards
Fatalities: 0
Injuries: 0
Start Date: 06/18/2025
Start Time: 11:54 AM CDT
Start Location: 2 W Lynnville / Scott County / IL
Start Lat/Lon: 39.6884 / -90.3781
End Date: 06/18/2025
End Time: 11:56 AM CDT
End Location: 1 NW Lynnville / Morgan County / IL
End Lat/Lon: 39.6982 / -90.3655
Survey Summary:
The main damage was a few broken power poles near the
Scott/Morgan County line along old route 36. Corn was also
flattened in this area, and a home had some shingle and fascia
damage.
.Northwest Jacksonville...
Rating: EF1
Estimated Peak Wind: 100 mph
Path Length /statute/: 3.67 miles
Path Width /maximum/: 75 yards
Fatalities: 0
Injuries: 0
Start Date: 06/18/2025
Start Time: 12:02 PM CDT
Start Location: 2 W Jacksonville / Morgan County / IL
Start Lat/Lon: 39.7346 / -90.2735
End Date: 06/18/2025
End Time: 12:10 PM CDT
End Location: 3 NNW Jacksonville / Morgan County / IL
End Lat/Lon: 39.7821 / -90.2436
Survey Summary:
This tornado touched down near highway 104 and south of Lafayette
Ave., tracking northeast. It caused damage to the Future
Champions Sports Complex along Walnut St., tossing debris into
the ball diamonds across the street. It moved just west of the
hospital and across a subdivision west of the airport, snapping a
number of trees and destroying some small sheds. It lifted in a
cornfield along Zimmer Rd.
.Literberry...
Rating: EF2
Estimated Peak Wind: 125 mph
Path Length /statute/: 6.77 miles
Path Width /maximum/: 300 yards
Fatalities: 0
Injuries: 0
Start Date: 06/18/2025
Start Time: 12:07 PM CDT
Start Location: 4 NNE Jacksonville / Morgan County / IL
Start Lat/Lon: 39.7841 / -90.2126
End Date: 06/18/2025
End Time: 12:19 PM CDT
End Location: 2 NE Literberry / Morgan County / IL
End Lat/Lon: 39.8727 / -90.1637
Survey Summary:
The tornado touched down near a neighborhood northeast of the
Jacksonville Airport where it damaged several large trees. It
continued northward and took down nearly a dozen large power
poles along Substation Rd and caused significant damage to a
farmstead and residence on Sorrill Rd. As it continued north-
northeast numerous trees were hit, corn was flattened, and metal
outbuilding pieces were scattered about fields. The tornado
lifted somewhere near the Morgan/Cass county line.
.Ashland #1...
Rating: EF1
Estimated Peak Wind: 100 mph
Path Length /statute/: 7.40 miles
Path Width /maximum/: 50 yards
Fatalities: 0
Injuries: 0
Start Date: 06/18/2025
Start Time: 12:15 PM CDT
Start Location: 3 NNW Alexander / Morgan County / IL
Start Lat/Lon: 39.7689 / -90.0478
End Date: 06/18/2025
End Time: 12:21 PM CDT
End Location: 2 SSE Ashland / Morgan County / IL
End Lat/Lon: 39.8674 / -89.9945
Survey Summary:
Sentinel satellite data indicted the tornado touched down west of
Highway 123 and north of Old 36. It crossed the highway at Kern Road
widened to about 50 yards as it continued northeast, through farm
fields. It then damaged a farm machine shed and dented 2 grain silos
at the intersection of Hog Barn Road and Buelah Road, before continuing
northeast through additional farm fields. It damaged a few hardwood
trees, then dissipated just north of Donnan Lane at the
Morgan/Sangamon County line.
.Pleasant Plains...
Rating: EF1
Estimated Peak Wind: 100 mph
Path Length /statute/: 10.68 miles
Path Width /maximum/: 200 yards
Fatalities: 0
Injuries: 0
Start Date: 06/18/2025
Start Time: 12:25 PM CDT
Start Location: 3 WNW Berlin / Sangamon County / IL
Start Lat/Lon: 39.779 / -89.9448
End Date: 06/18/2025
End Time: 12:38 PM CDT
End Location: 4 ESE Tallula / Menard County / IL
End Lat/Lon: 39.922 / -89.8718
Survey Summary:
Sentinel satellite data indicted the tornado touched down
2.6 miles northwest of Berlin, and initially traveled through
farm fields. It snapped several large trees at a farmstead along
N Pleasant Plains Rd. Further northeast, it tossed a pair of
grain bins across Watts Rd. Additional tree damage was observed
downstream near both Claysville and Loyd, with shingles removed
from a house along County Rd 7 as well.
.Ashland #2...
Rating: EFU
Estimated Peak Wind: N/A
Path Length /statute/: 1.45 miles
Path Width /maximum/: 0 yards
Fatalities: 0
Injuries: 0
Start Date: 06/18/2025
Start Time: 12:29 PM CDT
Start Location: 3 NW Ashland / Cass County / IL
Start Lat/Lon: 39.9189 / -90.0439
End Date: 06/18/2025
End Time: 12:31 PM CDT
End Location: 3 NNW Ashland / Cass County / IL
End Lat/Lon: 39.9364 / -90.0288
Survey Summary:
Based on Sentinel satellite photos, a tornado touched down
3 miles northwest of Ashland and traveled northeast, entirely
through farm fields. The tornado appears to have lifted 3 miles
north-northwest of Ashland. No damage has been reported at this
time, so no intensity could be assigned.
.Newmansville...
Rating: EFU
Estimated Peak Wind: N/A
Path Length /statute/: 1.71 miles
Path Width /maximum/: 0 yards
Fatalities: 0
Injuries: 0
Start Date: 06/18/2025
Start Time: 12:37 PM CDT
Start Location: 4 WNW Tallula / Cass County / IL
Start Lat/Lon: 39.9734 / -90.0088
End Date: 06/18/2025
End Time: 12:38 PM CDT
End Location: 4 NW Tallula / Cass County / IL
End Lat/Lon: 39.996 / -89.996
Survey Summary:
Sentinel satellite data showed a tornado touched down in eastern
Cass County near Carson Road south of Cox Creek Road, and tracked
northeast through mainly farm fields to Pschirrer Road. No damage
has been reported at this time, so no intensity could be
assigned.
.Petersburg...
Rating: EF1
Estimated Peak Wind: 110 mph
Path Length /statute/: 1.40 miles
Path Width /maximum/: 200 yards
Fatalities: 0
Injuries: 0
Start Date: 06/18/2025
Start Time: 12:41 PM CDT
Start Location: 3 NNE Tallula / Menard County / IL
Start Lat/Lon: 39.9934 / -89.9182
End Date: 06/18/2025
End Time: 12:44 PM CDT
End Location: 3 W Petersburg / Menard County / IL
End Lat/Lon: 40.0127 / -89.9097
Survey Summary:
The tornado touched down along Ed Hinrichs Rd, where it caused
minor damage to a couple trees. It then moved northeast,
destroying 5 grain bins and topping hardwood trees at a farmstead
along Gellerman Rd. The last observed damage was at a pair of
homes along Newmansville Ave. Large, healthy limbs were blown out
of hardwood trees, a row of 18 evergreen trees were topped, and
shingles were removed from both homes.
.Mason City...
Rating: EF0
Estimated Peak Wind: 75 mph
Path Length /statute/: 0.08 miles
Path Width /maximum/: 100 yards
Fatalities: 0
Injuries: 0
Start Date: 06/18/2025
Start Time: 01:18 PM CDT
Start Location: 2 NNE Mason City / Mason County / IL
Start Lat/Lon: 40.2319 / -89.675
End Date: 06/18/2025
End Time: 01:20 PM CDT
End Location: 2 NNE Mason City / Mason County / IL
End Lat/Lon: 40.2328 / -89.6741
Survey Summary:
A brief tornado occurred approximately two miles northeast of
Mason City. The tornado knocked over one tree, as well as a
couple tree limbs and corn, along county road 1200 N before
quickly dissipating.
.Farmer City...
Rating: EF1
Estimated Peak Wind: 100 mph
Path Length /statute/: 3.56 miles
Path Width /maximum/: 100 yards
Fatalities: 0
Injuries: 0
Start Date: 06/18/2025
Start Time: 01:50 PM CDT
Start Location: 4 NNE De Witt / De Witt County / IL
Start Lat/Lon: 40.2387 / -88.7653
End Date: 06/18/2025
End Time: 01:55 PM CDT
End Location: 4 WNW Farmer City / De Witt County / IL
End Lat/Lon: 40.2682 / -88.7101
Survey Summary:
A tornado began in a cornfield near Buckeye Road, flattening corn
as it progressed northeast. It impacted a farmstead south of the
intersection of Depot and Leroy Roads, producing damage to trees
and completely destroying a large farm outbuilding with estimated
wind speeds of 100 mph. The tornado continued northeast,
producing tree and roof damage to another farmstead along Depot
Road before tracking through a field for nearly two miles. The
tornado eventually crossed Prairie Chapel Road, producing minor
tree damage to a residence before quickly dissipating in a field
to the northeast.
.Hopedale...
Rating: EFU
Estimated Peak Wind: N/A
Path Length /statute/: 0.22 miles
Path Width /maximum/: 50 yards
Fatalities: 0
Injuries: 0
Start Date: 06/18/2025
Start Time: 01:56 PM CDT
Start Location: 2 NNE Hopedale / Tazewell County / IL
Start Lat/Lon: 40.4548 / -89.4015
End Date: 06/18/2025
End Time: 01:56 PM CDT
End Location: 2 NNE Hopedale / Tazewell County / IL
End Lat/Lon: 40.4574 / -89.3994
Survey Summary:
A storm chaser took a video of a brief touchdown. Tornado was on
the ground for about 45 seconds, causing no damage.
.Bellflower...
Rating: EFU
Estimated Peak Wind: N/A
Path Length /statute/: 0.10 miles
Path Width /maximum/: 30 yards
Fatalities: 0
Injuries: 0
Start Date: 06/18/2025
Start Time: 02:13 PM CDT
Start Location: 1 SSW Bellflower / McLean County / IL
Start Lat/Lon: 40.3274 / -88.536
End Date: 06/18/2025
End Time: 02:14 PM CDT
End Location: 1 SSW Bellflower / McLean County / IL
End Lat/Lon: 40.3281 / -88.5344
Survey Summary:
A video relayed by broadcast media shows a rope-shaped tornado
occurring in a field to the east of Route 54 near Bellflower.
There have been no reports of damage in this area, so this
tornado could not be assigned a rating.
&&
EF Scale: The Enhanced Fujita Scale classifies tornadoes into the
following categories:
EF0.....65 to 85 mph
EF1.....86 to 110 mph
EF2.....111 to 135 mph
EF3.....136 to 165 mph
EF4.....166 to 200 mph
EF5.....>200 mph
NOTE:
The information in this statement is preliminary and subject to
change pending final review of the events and publication in
NWS Storm Data.
$$
Geelhart/Auten
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT...SUMMARY...CORRECTED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LINCOLN IL
1122 PM CDT MON MAY 3 2021
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0455 PM HAIL 3 SSE BLUFF SPRINGS 39.95N 90.33W
05/03/2021 E1.50 INCH CASS IL COCORAHS
0504 PM HAIL VIRGINIA 39.95N 90.21W
05/03/2021 E1.50 INCH CASS IL PUBLIC
RELAYED BY BROADCAST MEDIA. DAMAGE TO CARS.
0505 PM TORNADO 3 S VIRGINIA 39.91N 90.21W
05/03/2021 CASS IL TRAINED SPOTTER
ON GROUND IN OPEN FIELD. DIME SIZED HAIL.
0515 PM HAIL 4 WSW NEWMANSVILLE 39.98N 90.08W
05/03/2021 E1.00 INCH CASS IL FIRE DEPT/RESCUE
RELAYED BY ASHLAND FIRE.
0527 PM TORNADO 2 WNW PLEASANT PLAINS 39.88N 89.95W
05/03/2021 SANGAMON IL STORM CHASER
CORRECTION TO PREVIOUS REPORT OF TORNADO 3 N
ASHLAND.
0532 PM HAIL 3 S PETERSBURG 39.97N 89.85W
05/03/2021 E1.00 INCH MENARD IL AMATEUR RADIO
0532 PM TSTM WND DMG 3 S PETERSBURG 39.97N 89.85W
05/03/2021 MENARD IL AMATEUR RADIO
POWER POLES BLOWN DOWN INTO FIELD.
0610 PM TORNADO 1 ESE DAWSON 39.85N 89.45W
05/03/2021 SANGAMON IL PUBLIC
BRIEF TOUCHDOWN NEAR I-72.
0612 PM TSTM WND DMG 3 N DAWSON 39.90N 89.46W
05/03/2021 SANGAMON IL TRAINED SPOTTER
POWER POLES DOWNED.
0614 PM TORNADO 1 NW MECHANICSBURG 39.82N 89.41W
05/03/2021 UF1 SANGAMON IL TRAINED SPOTTER
CORRECTS PREVIOUS TORNADO REPORT FROM 1 NW
MECHANICSBURG.
0718 PM HAIL 1 S MACON 39.70N 89.00W
05/03/2021 E1.00 INCH MACON IL PUBLIC
0728 PM HAIL 5 WSW ROSAMOND 39.35N 89.25W
05/03/2021 E2.00 INCH CHRISTIAN IL TRAINED SPOTTER
0824 PM TSTM WND DMG CHARLESTON 39.48N 88.18W
05/03/2021 COLES IL EMERGENCY MNGR
TREE BLOWN DOWN.
&&
$$
The following is a technical overview of the meteorological conditions that occurred during the May 3rd severe weather event across central Illinois.
On Monday, May 3rd, thunderstorms developed along a cold front in north central Missouri and progressed into west central Illinois by mid-afternoon. Widespread cloud cover was in place across central Illinois through much of the morning and afternoon, but clouds diminished ahead of the cold front. In areas where the sun came out ahead of the front, temperatures climbed into the upper 70s. Dew point temperatures were in the mid-60s, resulting in a moderately unstable environment with around 1500 J/kg of mixed-layer convective available potential energy (MLCAPE). This instability combined with 35-45 knots of deep layer wind shear was supportive of severe weather. The angle between the shear vectors and the cold front was greater than 45 degrees, allowing for the development of supercells. The first image below shows the surface observations as of 22z/5pm, with the cold front pushing into west central Illinois. The second image shows the MLCAPE as of 22z/5pm. Note the lack of blue shading across central Illinois indicating the atmosphere is unstable and ready for thunderstorm development in the presence of a forcing mechanism (in this case, the forcing mechanism was the cold front). The second image shows the shear vectors at the same time.
The tornado threat was enhanced by a mesoscale convective vortex (MCV), an area of spin in the atmosphere that formed as a result of thunderstorms the previous day across Kansas/Nebraska, which tracked across north-central Missouri then northeastward across the Illinois River Valley. This MCV contributed to a surface wind shift, from southwesterly to southeasterly, ahead of the cold front. This localized wind shift increased the low-level wind shear, which increased the tornado potential.
Several severe thunderstorms developed along the cold front and moved through central Illinois. The strongest storm tracked from Cass County east-southeastward towards Coles County. That storm produced at least four tornadoes and up to 2" hail (hen egg sized). (See the "Reports" tab for complete details regarding the location of tornadoes). All four tornadoes occurred primarily in open fields, and a tornado rating could not be assigned due to the lack of damage. The other severe thunderstorms produced large hail, but did not produce tornadoes. Overall, damage reports from the event were fairly limited. Power poles were blown down in Sangamon County, however, it is believed this damage was caused by straight line winds. Ping pong ball sized hail caused damage to vehicles in Virginia, IL. An observer five miles north of Buffalo, IL, reported that enough half-inch sized hail stones fell to cover the ground in hail.
Satellite Loop
Visible and IR satellite loop showing storm initiation in north-central Missouri during the late morning hours of May 3rd. As it moves eastward, a line of thunderstorms quickly develops and strengthens upon reaching the Illinois border with cold cloud tops (orange colors) indicating persistent updrafts. Additional cells develop southward into the favorable storm environment while the line progresses across the state. After sunset, storms begin to lose energy and weaken as they approach the Indiana border.
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Closer Look at Tornadic Storm
The loop below is a base reflectivity animation focusing on the supercell that went on to produce 5 tornados in central Illinois. This radar loop shows the early stages of this storm and spans 16 minutes from 4:41-4:57 PM local time. In this loop, red boxes indicate a severe thunderstorm warning and the purple box indicates a tornado warning.
Photos of the thunderstorms across central Illinois. This section will be updated. If you have photos of the storms that you would like for us to include in the event summary, send us a tweet at @NWSLincolnIL with your picture, location, and permission to use your photo.
.jpg/Diego Garcia, 8S Virginia (2)__360x480.jpg)
.jpg/Diego Garcia, 8S Virginia (3)__360x480.jpg)
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