Summary
April featured near normal temperatures, and rainfall that ranged from well below normal from western into central Illinois, to well above normal near the I-70 corridor. Due to dry conditions over western Illinois in recent weeks, the National Drought Monitor classified portions of west-central Illinois as "Abnormally Dry".
Temperatures were generally below normal for the first half of April, as northerly flow dominated the Midwest and Great Lakes. A pattern shift brought several days of southwest flow and much above normal temperatures for mid-month, before cooling to near to below normal again by the end of April. The last widespread freeze of the season occurred around the 9th-12th across the region.
There were several periods of active weather, but no major severe weather events occurred during the month. Two of the more significant events were a wind-driven hail event which caused some siding damage in Neoga on the 22nd, and two weak (EF0) tornadoes which occurred in Effingham and Richland counties on the 27th which did not cause any damage. The heaviest rain event affected areas south of I-72 on the 10th-11th, when copious moisture interacted with a slow-moving frontal boundary to bring 1-2"+ rain totals, with the heaviest south of I-70. The most widespread rainfall fell at the end of the month, as steady rains developed north of a warm front on the 30th. This produced one half, to one inch of rain across the entire area.
Rainfall and Temperature Maps
Climate Data
The table below summarizes April rainfall and temperature, and departure from normal for selected cities across central and southeast Illinois. Data from Peoria and Springfield are from ASOS sites, while others are from NWS Cooperative Observers.
| Site |
Rainfall |
Departure from Normal | Average Temperature |
Departure from Normal |
|
Charleston |
4.66" | +0.37" | 55.7 | +1.0 |
| Danville |
4.28" |
+0.30" | 53.4 | -0.1 |
| Decatur |
3.82" |
+0.15" | 53.3 | -1.1 |
| Effingham |
7.98" |
NA | 55.1 | NA |
|
Flora |
6.09" | +1.84" | 55.7 | +0.8 |
| Galesburg |
3.33" |
-0.39" | 50.3 | -0.6 |
|
Havana |
2.02" | -1.65" | NA | NA |
|
Jacksonville |
2.75" | -1.08" | 53.7 | +0.0 |
| Lincoln |
2.59" |
-1.02" | 52.6 | +0.2 |
|
Normal |
2.06" |
-1.61" | 51.0 | +1.0 |
|
Olney |
5.18" | +0.85" | 54.1 | -0.1 |
|
Paris |
8.65" | +4.54" | 52.1 | -0.6 |
| Peoria |
2.55" |
-1.08" | 53.2 | +0.9 |
| Springfield |
2.77" |
-0.74" | 55.2 | +1.7 |
|
Tuscola |
4.64" | +0.49" | 53.1 | +0.6 |
| Urbana |
NA |
NA | NA | NA |
Links below are the monthly climate summaries for area cities. Only the summaries for Peoria, Springfield and Lincoln are considered "official", meaning they are the station of record for their respective locations. The other summaries are "supplemental", meaning another location in the area is the official climate station for that city.
Climate data for other area cities is available at http://www.nws.noaa.gov/climate/xmacis.php?wfo=ilx
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