Assessment of the June 26th Gifford-Rantoul Tornado

Overview

A few thunderstorms developed during the evening hours on June 26 in Champaign county. One storm developed rotation, and a tornado touched down just before 8:30pm southeast of Rantoul. The tornado impacted mainly rural areas of Champaign county before dissipating to the west-northwest of Gifford, producing damage to outbuilding roofs, trees, and crops.

Click here for a link to the NWS Public Information Statement regarding the tornado damage survey.

Photo by Jeff Frame

Tornado
Photos
Radar

Tornadoes:

Tornado - Rantoul/Gifford
CHAMPAIGN COUNTY

Date	6/26/2018
Time (Local)	8:27 - 8:35 pm CDT
EF Rating	EF-1
Est. Peak Winds	90 mph
Path Length	3.9 miles
Max Width	75 yards
Injuries/Deaths	0/0
Summary: The tornado developed in a corn field 3.3 miles south of Rantoul. The tornado initially damaged the roof of a large shed. The tornado continued through corn and soybean fields before damaging trees - which fell onto a car. As the tornado crossed U.S. Highway 136, it damaged the roofs of two garages and a large barn. The tornado dissipated in a field 1.9 miles west-northwest of Gifford.

Track Map

The Enhanced Fujita (EF) Scale classifies tornadoes into the following categories:

EF0 Weak 65-85 mph	EF1 Moderate 86-110 mph	EF2 Significant 111-135 mph	EF3 Severe 136-165 mph	EF4 Extreme 166-200 mph	EF5 Catastrophic 200+ mph

Photos:


Tornado lofting debris, shortly after touchdown. Photo from Ryan Ideus	Roof and tree damage near the start of the tornado path Photo by NWS Lincoln	Damage along the path of the tornado Photo from Jeff Frame	Roof damage near the end of the tornado path Photo by NWS Lincoln

Radar:


Lincoln Doppler Radar 6/26/18 8:23 PM CDT 4-panel radar image shortly before the tornado touched down. Weak rotation was observed to the southeast of Rantoul (circled). Radar echo tops were lower than 20,000 feet, indicating the storm's updraft was weak.	Lincoln Doppler Radar 6/26/18 8:27 PM CDT 4-panel radar around the time the tornado touched down. The approximate track of the tornado is denoted by the white line (top panels).	Lincoln Doppler Radar 6/26/18 8:31 PM CDT 4-panel radar around the time the tornado lifted. Dark blue values of correlation coefficient (bottom left panel) indicate debris from the tornado.

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