EF1 Tornado — Whiteside, Illinois

2023-03-31 · near Deer Grove, Whiteside, Illinois

Event narrative

This tornado began just south of Illinois highway 92 in northwest Bureau County, then moved into far southeast Whiteside county, near the intersection of Osage Road and 1050 St E. The tornado tracked for 2 miles in Whiteside County, before moving into Lee County, about a half mile south of the Green River. This tornado would continue for 6 additional miles into southwest Lee County (see NWS Chicago StormData). The damage from this tornado included numerous heavily damaged outbuildings, several snapped power poles, and dozens of trees. The worst damage was to a large farmstead outbuilding on the Whiteside and Bureau County border area, with the roof and two of the four walls destroyed and debris slung well into a field. Peak winds with this tornado were estimated at 110 mph. The tornado was rated EF1 in Bureau and Whiteside Counties.

Wider weather episode

A very strong system developed on the morning of March 31st and tracked across the state of Iowa. This system pulled unseasonably warm and moist air into the Midwest, which combined with a very favorable wind profile to create a volatile environment for severe thunderstorms. Discrete supercell thunderstorms occurred initially, but quickly transitioned into a QLCS mode. This system produced a historic tornado outbreak for the area, with a record 29 tornadoes on the day, including 13 rated EF-2, 1 rated EF-3, and 1 rated EF-4. This was the first EF-4 tornado in the NWS Quad Cities service area since 1995. 11 injuries were reported, with no known fatalities. In addition to the numerous tornadoes, there were many large hail and damaging wind reports. Maximum straight line thunderstorm winds were estimated at 80 to 90 mph.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (41.5850, -89.6670)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1087069. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.