Overview
A strong spring low pressure system brought severe storms to parts of the Midwest on Easter Sunday, April 20. The day started with a warm front lifting north through the area, sparking the development of non-severe thunderstorms. A break in activity during the afternoon allowed the atmosphere to destabilize ahead of an approaching cold front. Storms developed over Missouri and tracked northeast into Illinois late in the evening. Although CAPE was only moderately strong, both strong wind shear and synoptic scale forcing supported severe storm development. A handful of thunderstorm wind damage reports were received, 60-65 mph winds were estimated by a trained spotter in Lewistown, IL, and a total of 3 tornadoes were confirmed in Knox and Tazewell counties. |
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Tornadoes
Select a tornado from the table to zoom into the track and view more information. The default table view is limited to 8 tracks, but can be scrolled by a mouse wheel or dynamically expanded. Additionally, the table can fill the entire window by clicking the small circular expanding arrow icon at the very top right of the table and returned to its original size by clicking the button again. The side information panel that opens over the map can be closed using the "X" on the upper right corner of the pop-up. Zoom into the map and click damage points to see detailed information and pictures from the surveys.
NOTE: times shown below are local to your device's time zone. |
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 |
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Tornadoes that fail to impact any ratable structures on the EF-Scale are rated EF-Unknown (EF-U) |
Photos & Video
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Damage to a farm 1.5 miles northeast of Altona, IL. (NWS Damage Survey) |
Damage to a farm 1.5 miles northeast of Altona, IL. (NWS Damage Survey) |
Tornadic tree damage east of Tremont, IL. (NWS Damage Survey) |
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Storm Reports
Preliminary Local Storm Report...Summary National Weather Service Lincoln IL 1059 PM CDT Tue Apr 22 2025 ..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON... ..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE.... ..REMARKS.. 0738 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg 3 NE Bluff Springs 40.03N 90.31W 04/20/2025 Cass IL Public Delayed report. Several poles were downed by thunderstorm winds. Relayed via broadcast media. Time estimated from radar. 0741 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg 3 NE Astoria 40.26N 90.32W 04/20/2025 Fulton IL Emergency Mngr Large tree down across N County 2 Hwy north of E Workman Rd. 0810 PM Tstm Wnd Gst Lewistown 40.40N 90.16W 04/20/2025 E65 MPH Fulton IL Trained Spotter 60-65 mph wind gusts reported. 0819 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg 1 S Maquon 40.79N 90.16W 04/20/2025 Knox IL Public Delayed report. Home playground equipment destroyed. Relayed via broadcast media. Time estimated from radar. 0825 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg 4 SSW Easton 40.17N 89.86W 04/20/2025 Mason IL Fire Dept/Rescue Tree down on a power line along county road 750N. 0839 PM Tornado 1 W Victoria 41.03N 90.12W 04/20/2025 Knox IL NWS Storm Survey The tornado touched down west of Victoria and tracked 16.48 miles north-northeast before dissipating north of Galva. It was on the ground for 18 minutes and rated EF-1. 0841 PM Tornado 1 NE Altona 41.13N 90.15W 04/20/2025 Knox IL NWS Storm Survey The tornado touched down northeast of Altona and tracked 4.41 miles north before dissipating near Bishop Hill. It was on the ground for 7 minutes and was rated an EF-1. 0855 PM Tornado 3 NE Tremont 40.56N 89.45W 04/20/2025 Tazewell IL NWS Storm Survey The tornado affected mainly rural areas of Tazewell County where it produced EF-1 damage to trees, outbuildings and power poles, with peak winds of 90 mph. It reached a width of 100 yards as it damaged and uprooted numerous trees and snapped a couple of power poles. The tornado was on the ground for 9.5 miles before dissipating about 3 miles north of Deer Creek. 0857 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg 3 WNW Mackinaw 40.56N 89.40W 04/20/2025 Tazewell IL Emergency Mngr 6 inch diameter tree limbs down, and about a 70 foot section of a barn wall was blown out. 0858 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg 4 ESE Morton 40.58N 89.40W 04/20/2025 Tazewell IL Emergency Mngr Top of a grain bin blown off near the intersection of Washington and Robinson Roads. 0859 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg 2 SE Wyoming 41.04N 89.74W 04/20/2025 Stark IL Public Soffit came loose on a house. 1022 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg 3 WSW Flora 38.66N 88.55W 04/20/2025 Clay IL Emergency Mngr Tree down blocking Old Highway 50 at Country Club Road. 1135 PM Rain Latham 39.97N 89.16W 04/20/2025 M1.47 Inch Logan IL Mesonet Storm total. 1150 PM Rain 3 WNW Peoria 40.73N 89.65W 04/20/2025 M1.22 Inch Peoria IL NWS Employee Since 7 am today.
Radar
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Additional Information
The Forecast
SPC Day 3 Categorical Outlook | SPC Day 3 Probabilistic Outlook | SPC Day 2 Categorical Outlook | SPC Day 2 Probabilistic Outlook |
SPC Day 1 Categorical Outlook | SPC Day 1 Tornado Outlook | SPC Day 1 Hail Outlook | SPC Day 1 Wind Outlook |
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