Thunderstorm Wind — Tazewell, Illinois

1998-06-29 · near Countywide, Tazewell, Illinois

Event narrative

As the storms moved through Tazewell County, more intense damage was observed in two main areas, Morton and South Pekin. In Morton, as a tornado moved through southwestern portions of the city, strong microburst winds (100 to 110 mph) caused considerable tree and power line damage, as well as, structural damage in and close to the tornado path which masked or "wiped out" any evidence of a possible tornado touchdown. The tornado occurrence was not discounted however, as there were numerous valid spotter observations plus a mesocyclone signature on doppler radar. In the South Pekin area, 7 railroad cars were blown over and two high-tension towers were blown down. Fortunately, no injuries were reported and damage in Tazewell County was estimated around $3 million.

Wider weather episode

A large bow echo system developed over eastern Iowa and moved rapidly to the southeast into Illinois. It moved into Central Illinois's County Warning Area (CWA) around 4 pm in Knox County and exited the CWA (Lawrence County) around 830 pm. Damage was reported in all 35 counties with this system. The overall general area of wind damage was produced by the passage of the bow echo's "gust front" on the leading edge of the line of thunderstorms. Wind speeds were measured or estimated to be between 60 to 80 mph, blowing down or uprooting thousands of trees, tree limbs, power poles, and power lines. Hundreds of trees fell onto structures causing damage ranging from just torn guttering to major roof and structural damage. Also, hundreds of vehicles sustained damage from fallen trees and numerous outbuildings, sheds, and silos were either damaged or destroyed. Considerable crop damage was sustained in most areas. In some areas, more intense damage was observed, caused by stronger wind speeds. Speeds were measured or estimated in these areas at 100 to 110 mph. These areas of damage were apparently "microbursts" produced by a series of mesocyclones that formed on the forward edges of the bow echo. These microbursts, or swaths of more intense wind damage were generally about 1/2 a mile in width. In these areas significant structural damage occurred, such as peeling off roofs, blowing over freight railroad cars, bending steel power poles, and other structural damage. A third phenomena that occurred with this event were spin-up tornadoes along the leading edge of the bow echo structure. These tornadoes caused significant damage in narrow swaths along the bow echo's path and were often masked by the microburst damage occurring adjacent to them. Based on valid spotter observations and mesocyclone signatures on doppler radar, the existence of these tornadoes was validated. Overall, approximately twelve people sustained injuries and damage was estimated around $16 million.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (40.5300, -89.6200)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 5655237. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.