Significant Weather Event Reviews

Thunderstorms & Tornadoes

2024

• May 26, 2024 - Tornadoes, Large Hail, and Straight-Line Winds
• May 7-8, 2024 - Tornadoes, Large Hail, and Straight-Line Winds
• April 18, 2024 - Central, Eastern Missouri and Illinois Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, and Large Hail
• April 1, 2024 - Tornado, Straight-Line Winds, and Large Hail
• March 14, 2024 - Missouri and Illinois Severe Weather Outbreak

2023

• August 4, 2023 - Northeast Missouri and West-Central Illinois Tornadoes
• April 15, 2023 - Tornadoes Impact East-Central Missouri and Southern Illinois
• March 31, 2023 - Large Hail, Damaging Winds, and Salem, IL Tornado 
  Severe thunderstorms caused large hail across central/northeast Missouri and west-central Illinois, followed by damaging wind in the St. Louis area and southwest Illinois. One supercell caused an EF-1 tornado in Salem, IL.

2022

• May 19, 2022 - Tornadoes and Straight-line Winds 
  Eight tornadoes and notable straight-line wind damage occurred across east-central Missouri and west-central Illinois, including three EF-0 tornadoes in St. Louis County.

2021

• December 10, 2021 - Tornado Outbreak 
  Two EF3 tornadoes caused significant damage to homes and business in Defiance, MO and Edwardsville, IL
• October 24, 2021 - Tornado Outbreak in Southeast Missouri and Southwest Illinois
• Supercells developed across southeast Missouri and southwest Illinois, producing several tornadoes, including two EF-3 tornadoes.
• October 11, 2021 - Tornado in Greene County, IL
  A small supercell developed during the afternoon of October 11th, 2021 near Wrights, IL. Damage to structures, trees, and vehicles were observed. Multiple videos and photos were taken and sent promptly to NWS St. Louis.
• July 9, 2021 - Significant Hail and Damaging Wind Event
  Supercell thunderstorms developed during the evening of July 9th, 2021, producing significant hail across western IL and eastern MO. With time, these storms congealed into a line and produced damaging, straight line winds of up to 90 mph in spots. 

2019

• May 22,2019 - Jeferson City EF-3 Tornado
  This EF-3 tornado occurred during the late evening hours of May 22, and prompted the National Weather Service Forecast Office in St. Louis to issue the first Tornado Emergency in its history.
• Late May Tornadoes
  Thunderstorms over three days produced five tornadoes in central and eastern Missouri; two EF-0 tornadoes, two EF-1 tornadoes, and the EF-3 tornado which hit Jefferson City. The storms also produced straight line winds, damaging homes and trees across the area.

2018

• Two Undular Bores Observed Across St. Louis
  On March 26, 2018 two undular bores were observed across portions of the St. Louis Metropolitan Area. An undular bore is a wave or waves in the atmosphere that can be seen on radar and sometimes by the clouds they produce. They form when an air mass, such as a storm outflow boundary, collides with another air mass characterized by cool, stable air.

2017

• May 27th - Damaging Wind and Large Hail Over Central and Southeast Missouri
  A few rounds of severe thunderstorms affected portions of central and southeast Missouri. The first round was mainly supercells, dropping large hail. Late in the afternoon and into the evening, a severe squall line brought damaging straight line winds.


• May 19th - Damaging Wind and Isolated Tornado Event
  Two rounds of severe thunderstorms affected the region, one early in the morning and another in the late afternoon and early evening. Each round brought damaging winds along with isolated tornadoes.


• April 29th - Two Weak QLCS Tornadoes (Orchard Farms, MO and Brighton, IL)


• March 6th-7th - QLCS Tornado Outbreak (Wentzville, MO Tornado)
  A severe squall line of thunderstorms moved across the region during the late evening hours of Monday March 6th and early morning hours of Tuesday March 7th.  Numerous reports of wind damage and hail were received.  A total of seven tornadoes have been surveyed or identified from this event.
   
• February 28th -March 1st -  Severe Weather Event (Perryville, MO Tornado)
  A severe weather outbreak occurred on February 28th and lasted into the early morning hours of March 1st 2017.  Four tornadoes were documented to have occurred in the National Weather Service St. Louis County Warning Area, including a portion of the long track tornado that caused damage north of Perryville, MO.   Hail and wind reports were noted with many of the storms.

2016

• May 11th   EF-2 Bourbon Tornado and Softball Size Hail in St. Charles County
  Several rounds of severe thunderstorms affected parts of Missouri and Illinois on May 11th 2016.  The most costly damage occurred from a pair of supercells that dropped baseball to softball size hail across St. Charles County Missouri and produced severe wind gusts in St. Louis County and the City of St. Louis around the lunch hour and from an EF2 tornado that occurred near Bourbon and Sullivan Missouri during the evening.
   
• April 27th  Four Weak Tornadoes occur across Northeast Missouri and West Central Illinois
  Supercell thunderstorms developed during the late afternoon and evening hours.  Four weak tornadoes touched down along and north of a warm front across portions of northeast Missouri and west central Illinois.
   
• April 26th  Bow Echo Causes Significant Wind Damage and Two Weak Tornadoes
  A bow echo developed across central Missouri and moved east across the St. Louis Metropolitan Area during the early afternoon of April 26th 2016, causing severe wind damage. The greatest and most widespread wind damage occurred from northwest of Marthasville (Warren County, MO) to northeast of Defiance (St. Charles County, MO) where thousands of trees were toppled by 80 mph winds. Two weak tornadoes were also surveyed from this storm system in Warren and St. Charles Counties.

2015

• April 8 -  Potosi, Missouri Tornado
  An EF-1 Tornado produced damage in Potosi, Missouri.

2014

• April 3rd   Olivette and University EF-1 Tornado
  A weak tornado touched down just west of Interstate 170, crossed N. McKnight Road to Ruth Park Golf Club.  A total of 100 buildings were damaged by the tornado and damaging straight line thunderstorm winds, 20 had significant damage, and several cars were destroyed by falling trees or large limbs.
• February 20  Four Tornadoes Touch Down in Illinois and Strong Gradient Winds Accompany Storm System
  A winter storm moved north of the region, allowing a relatively unstable atmosphere to build north ahead of an approaching dry-line.  Severe thunderstorms produced ten tornadoes across west central and south central Illinois (four in the St. Louis County Warning Area).

2013

• November 17  Tornado Outbreak EF-4 New Minden, IL Tornado
  A fall season tornado outbreak occurred across the Midwest.  Many tornadoes were reported, especially across Illinois and Indiana, and wind damage stretched from Missouri to New York.  Five tornadoes were documented to have occurred within the St. Louis County Warning Area.
• May 31   EF-3 St. Charles/St. Louis County Tornado and Madison County, Illinois
  A total of nine tornadoes were surveyed by the National Weather Service in St. Louis. The two tornadoes that were rated EF-3 were associated witht he most intense circulationthat was located on the leading edge of the line of severe thunderstorms that affected the St. Louis Metropolitan Area, from St. Charles County, Missouri to Madison County, Illinois.  Several other circulations were responsible for seven weaker tornadoes in Montgomery, Franklin, Jefferson Counties in Missouri and Macoupin, Montgomery Counties in Illinois. Many locations outside of the tornado tracks saw extensive wind damage from straight line winds up to 100 mph.
• April 17-18 Severe Thunderstorms and Flash Flooding
  A slow moving storm system brought severe weather to the region during the afternoon and evening hours of April 17th. Several rounds of heavy rainfall resulted in areas of flash flooding during the night of April 17 and the day of April 18th.
• April 10   Squall Line Produces  EF-2 Tornado in North St. Louis County and Straight Line Wind Damage
  A severe squall line brought 60 to 100 mph wind gusts and three tornadoes to east central Missouri during the evening hours.  The greatest and most widespread damage occurred in north St. Louis County form Bridgeton through Hazelwood to Florissant Missouri along the track of an EF-2 tornado.

2012

• April 28 - Historic Hail Storms in Greater St. Louis Metropolitan Area
  Two waves of supercell thunderstorms brought widespread large hail and localized damaging winds to the St. Louis Metropolitan Area during the afternoon and evening hours of April 28th 2012. Widespread hail damage to vehicles, houses and businesses was reported across St. Charles County, St. Louis County, and St. Louis City in Missouri and Madison, St. Clair, Clinton, and Washington Counties in Illinois. Large swaths of golf ball to baseball size hail were reconstructed from storm reports gathered during and after the event. The largest hailstone observed and reported to the National Weather Service was 4.50 inches in diameter, or softball size, in Okawville, Illinois. There was at least one injury directly related to the very large hail. This occurred in Washington Park (Madison County, Illinois) when a mans hand was broken from a direct hit of a very large hailstone.

2011

• June 27 - Bow Echo Event
  A powerful complex of thunderstorms, known as a bow echo, moved across Missouri and Illinois during the early morning hours of June 27th, 2011. The line, which raced east at 60 to 70 mph, produced widespread winds of 40 to 60 mph along and north of a Jefferson City to St. Louis line.
• May 25 - Severe Weather Event
  A severe weather outbreak occurred the Midwest on May 25th, 2011. Numerous supercell thunderstorms developed and moved north-northeast across Missouri and Illinois during the afternoon and evening hours. Very large hail and damaging winds were reported, along with funnel clouds and a few tornadoes.
• April 22 - Good Friday St. Louis Metropolitan EF-4 Tornado
  Two tornadic supercells crossed the St. Louis County Warning Area during the afternoon and evening hours of Good Friday, April 22 2011.  The northern most supercell spawned a EF4 tornado that ripped a 21 mile path of destruction across St. Louis County in Missouri and Madison County in Illinois. Municipalities that were affected include Maryland Heights, Bridgeton, St. Ann, Edmundson, Lambert St. Louis International Airport (City of St. Louis), Berkeley, Ferguson, Pontoon Beach/Granite City.
• April 19 - Severe Weather Outbreak
  A severe weather outbreak occurred on April 19th, 2011 across eastern Missouri and western Illinois. There were two episodes of severe thunderstorms, one during the early morning and the second in the afternoon and evening hours. The first round of severe thunderstorms brought very large hail, some up to the size of baseballs, to parts of central and eastern Missouri. These storms were elevated above the boundary layer so reports of wind damage were limited. The only report of substantial wind damage occurred to an elementary school in Spanish Lake (North St. Louis County).
  The second wave of severe thunderstorms brought large hail, damaging winds and tornadoes to much of the forecast area. Six tornadoes were surveyed from this event, including one EF3, two EF2, two EF1, and one EF0.
• April 15 - EF1 Pike County, Missouri Tornado
  In summary, the maximum damage rating of this tornado was EF1, with winds of 90 to 95 mph. The total length was 3.0 miles, with a maximum width of 50 yards.
• February 27-28  - Bow Echo Tornado Event
  A late winter storm system brought another round of severe thunderstorms to the region. Many reports of wind damage and hail (1/2 to 1 inch in diameter) were relayed to the National Weather Service. A total of twenty-two tornadoes have been confirmed so far from this event.

2010

• December 31 - New Years Eve Tornado Outbreak
  A tornado outbreak occurred on New Years Eve, December 31st, 2010. The National Weather Service surveyed and confirmed twelve tornado tracks. The strongest tornado occurred in Sunset Hills in St. Louis County and was rated a high end EF3 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale. One person was killed and six were injured by this tornado. The second strongest tornado occurred in Robertsville, Missouri in Franklin County and was rated EF2.
• June 27 - Severe Thunderstorm Event in Osage County, MO
  The National Weather Service conducted a damage survey over parts of west-central Osage County and determined that the tree and structural damage that occurred on June 27th, 2010 between 620 and 630 PM CDT was caused by a combination of damaging downburst winds and microbursts from a severe thunderstorm.
• April 30 - Severe Weather Event
  Several tornadoes were observed across portions of the eastern Ozarks to just south of the St. Louis Metropolitan Area.
• April 24 - Squall Line Produces Two Tornadoes in St. Louis County
  A line of severe thunderstorms moved northeast across the St. Louis area during the early evening hours of April 24th. Two small circulations developed within a distinct notch that was visible on the radar reflectivity. Interestingly, the circulations moved southeast to northwest, producing two weak tornadoes across St. Louis County. The first tornado occurred in Des Peres and the second was centered in Overland.
• April 23 - Tornadic Supercell Warren and Lincoln County in Missouri
  Intermittent reports of wall clouds, funnel clouds, and tornadoes accompanied a supercell thunderstorm as it moved from southern Warren County to Lincoln County in Missouri during the evening of April 23rd, 2010. The supercell became tornadic just as it crossed the warm front, likely ingesting a vorticity rich environment. The storm moved fairly slow, compared to most of the storms that we experience around here, moving only 25 to 35 mph to the northeast. Spotters, chasers, and local law enforcement captured photos of the classic supercell, but thankfully little if any damage was confirmed with the sporadic weak tornado touchdowns. The tornado was classified an EF0 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale and had an intermittent track of 22 miles from the first confirmed touchdown 4 miles northwest of Warrenton to the final report 5 miles northeast of Silex. Below are some photos of the wall cloud and funnel, along with a reflectivity image of the supercell and hook echo near Hawk Point.

2009

• June 8 - St. Clair County, Illinois EF-2 Tornado
  The tornado touched down just northeast of the intersection of North Green Mount Road and Lebanon Avenue in the Eagles Landing Subdivision. From this point the tornado produced a nearly continuous damage path that extended to about 1 mile southeast of the intersection of Highway 4 and Jefferson Road. It finally lifted as it approached the Kaskaskia River.
• May 13-14  Tornado and Wind Damage
  A slow moving line of severe thunderstorms brought damaging winds and tornadoes to Missouri and Illinois.
• May 8 - Derecho Event
  A fast moving complex of severe thunderstorms brought damaging winds, large hail and tornadoes to southern Missouri and Illinois. Thousands of trees were uprooted, numerous buildings and homes sustained damage from wind and hail. In addition, 3 to locally 5 inches of rainfall caused extensive flash flooding from Crawford County, Missouri to Randolph County, Illinois.
• March 8 - Severe Weather Event
  A fast moving line of supercell thunderstorms brought hail, damaging winds, and tornadoes to eastern Missouri and southwest Illinois. A total of 10 tornadoes have been documented with the severe thunderstorm event that occurred during the late morning and early afternoon hours of Sunday March 8th, 2009. After the line of thunderstorms moved across the area, strong gradient (non-thunderstorm) winds caused additional minor damage and power outages to the area.

2008

• December 27   Severe Weather Event and Flooding
  Six tornadoes occurred over parts of Missouri and west-central Illinois on Saturday morning, December 27th, 2008. Two tornadoes caused EF-1 damage and the other four caused EF-0 damage.
• August 28  Severe Weather Event
  Between 6:25 and 6:40 PM CDT, a continuous swath of damaging downburst winds and two weak tornadoes occurred over parts of southwest Shelby and far northern Monroe counties in northeast Missouri. The damage was confined to a corridor about 1 mile wide from 1.5 miles south of Clarence to 6 miles southwest of Shelbina over north-central Monroe county. Damage was mainly confined to silos, barns, power poles and numerous large trees. A large bow echo system that moved across parts of northeast Missouri was responsible for the damaging winds and weak tornadoes over this area. A second, smaller swath of continuous damaging downburst winds extended from 3/4 mile west of Bethel to just south of Bethel to 2 miles east-southeast of Bethel in northeast Shelby county Missouri. Damage was confined to medium and large trees.
• July 27   Severe Weather Event (Boone and Callaway Counties)
  A supercell thunderstorm produced a weak torando that damaged two homes, six mobile homes and three machine sheds.
• May 30   Northeast Missouri and West-Central Illinois Tornadoes
  Several supercells on convetive line (bow echo) spawned tornadoes and caused damaging downburst winds.
• January 7  Severe Weather/Tornado Outbreak
  The first severe weather outbreak of 2008 occurred early across the Midwest, with reports of large hail, damaging winds, and tornadoes being reported from Oklahoma to MIchigan.  Strong tornadoes were reported across southwest Missouri, northeast Illinois, and southeast Wisconsin. A total of 48 tornaodes were surveyed by the National Weather Service from this tornado outbreak.  Three fatalities and thirty injuries were reported from this event across the Midwest.

2007

• October 17  Tornadoes in Monroe and Callaway Counties
  Several tornadoes occurred along the leading edge of a squall line (bow echo) system during the late evening hours of October 17th and early morning hours of October 18th. Three tornadic damage tracks were uncovered over parts of Monroe county Missouri from the line of severe storms that moved through this area just before and just after Midnight (October 17-18, 2007).
• October 2  Tornado Event
  Several low-topped supercells produced 8 tornadoes and straight line wind damage from central and northeast Missouri to west central Illinois during the evening of October 2nd, 2007. This activity all occurred ahead of a cold front that moved across the region that evening and overnight.
• August 24   Damaging Wind Event
  A severe thunderstorm moved across parts of southwest and southern St. Louis County during the afternoon hours of August 24th, 2007, producing damaging downburst winds (including microbursts) over this region. Some of the hardest hit areas extended from just east of the downtown Kirkwood area through Oakland and areas eastward to Shrewsbury, Missouri. The damage east of Kirkwood occurred just after 3:00 PM CDT. Some trees and numerous large tree limbs damaged homes and vehicles over this area. Note the damage map outlines some of the areas hardest hit by the damaging winds. Surface winds were estimated between 65 to 75 mph.
• March 31   Bow Echo Produces Weak Tornado in St. Louis
  A bowing segment in a larger squall line was responsible for spawning a weak tornado over midtown St. Louis City. 
• March 1  Bow Echo Northeast Missouri
  A bow echo moved northeast across parts of northeast Missouri and west central Illinois producing wind damage and three weak tornadoes.

2006

• 22 September  Tornado Outbreak
  A strong storm system developed waves of supercell thunderstorms across Missouri and Illinois during the afternoon and early evening hours of 22 September 2006. Numerous reports of tornadoes and large hail were relayed to the National Weather Service. Many of the supercells were long track and cyclic in nature, producing many tornadoes. Ten tornado tracks were uncovered across the Saint Louis County Warning Area. Thankfully, there were no fatalities reported with this tornado outbreak.
• July 19 & 21   Derecho, Bow Echo and Heat Wave
  Two severe weather events occurred during the middle of a heat wave with widespread power outages, lasting more than a week, across the St. Louis Metropolitan Area.
• June 22  Severe Weather Event
  A hybrid high precipitation supercell and bow echo moved across Audrain and Pike Counties in Missouir producing damaging winds, hail and five weak tornadoes.
• May 24  Tornadoes over southwest Illinois
  Clusters of severe thunderstorms produced large hail and a few tornaodes.
• April 2   Bow Echo Severe Weather Event
  A line of severe thunderstorms brought damaging winds in excess of 70 mph to the St. Louis Metropolitan area and was responsible for spawning a number of tornadoes across Illinois. Two fatalities occuured
• March 12 &13  Tornado Outbreak
  Cyclic supercells developed and moved east across Kansas, Missouri and Illinois dorpping large hail up to the size of baseballs, damaging wind gusts over 60 mph and 49 confirmed tornadoes.
• March 11 - Tornado Outbreak
  The beginning of a three day severe weather outbreak that included multiple rounds of supercells that produced tornadoes.
• February 16    Large Hail Event
  Large hail pounded the northwest part of St. Louis County.  The largest hail observed was baseball size in Bridgeton. Several automobile dealerships suffered major damage to their vehicle inventory.  Total property damage was estimated to be around $600,000.

2005

• June 8  Bowing Squall Line
  Liine of strong to severe thunderstorms produced damaging wind and large hail across the region.
• May 11  Severe Thunderstorm Event
  Clusters of severe thunderstorms ignited along a boundary across central and east central Missouri.  Large hail was observed near Columbia, Missouri and a weak tornado was observed near Camp Point in Adams County, Illinois.
• April 21-22  Large Hail and Wind Event
  Supercell thunderstorms were responsible for large hail and a brief tornado touchdown in the late afternoon over parts of central Missouri.  The storms formed into a bowing line and moved east toward St. Louis.

2004

• October 18  Tornado Event
  Damage surveys conducted by National Weather Service personnel revealed that nine tornadoes hit parts of Washington, Iron, and Madison counties. Two supercell thunderstorms were responsible for the tornadoes. One storm produced five tornados in Washington County while the other produced two tornadoes in Iron County and two in Madison County.
• July 5 - Downburst Wind Event (southwest Illinois)
  Winds estimated between 65 and 85 mph caused signficant damage acors parts of Madison and Clinton Counties in Illinois.
• May 30  Seven Tornadoes in southwest and south central Illinois
  A total of seven tornado damage tracks were surveyed from this severe weather outbreak.
• May 25-27  Severe Weather Outbreak
  Three events occurred May 25-27 with numerous reports of large hail, damaging wind and tornadoes.
• 24 May - Severe Weather Event

2003

• July 18   Downburst and Hail Event
  Two supercells produced extensive hail damage across parts of south central Illinois along with wind damage.
• June 10  Bow Echo Event (southwest Illinois)
  During the afternoon hours a damaging bow echo moved east acoss the greater St. Louis area during the Bow Echo and MCV Experiment (BAMEX).  The mesoscale convective system produced a straight line wind damage swath and five tornadoes.
• May 10  Tornado Outbreak (northeast Missouri and west central Illinois)
  Nine tornadoes were documented in the St. Louis county warning area. Four of them were classified as strong (F2 or F3) and long tracked with path lengths greater than ten miles. Damage estimates were between five and seven million dollars.  No fatatlities occurred.
• May 6  Supercells to Bow Echo - DeSoto, Missouri
  A broken line of supercells formed across central Missouir and moved east along a stationary front orientated south of Interstate 70.  The supercells merged into a bow echo and produced significant wind damage in DeSoto, Missouri.  The storms then produced tornadoes across Illinois in addition to the straight line winds.

2002

• May 1  Tornadoes in south-central Illinois
• Large hail, damaging winds and tornadoes were observed in south-central Ili
• May 12-13   Tornadoes, Large Hail and Flooding Event
  Three tornadoes occurred across the eastern Ozarks and far southwestern Illinois and formed to the north of the apex of bowing line segment.
• May 6  Downburst Wind Event
  Thunderstorms produced severe wind gusts up to 60 mph across parts of St. Charles County, Missouri and Madison County in Illinois. 
• April 24  F2 Madison County, Missouri Tornado
  Supercells produced hail, damaging winds and tornadoes across southeast Missouri.

2001

• April 10th  Historic Hail Storm
  A long lived high precipitatoin supercell thunderstorm traversed portions of Missouri and Illinois producing catastrophic hail damage.  Most costly hailstorm in United States History at $1 billlion dollars.

1999

• June 1  Tornado Event
  Supercells produced tornadoes across the south central Illinois and the eastern Ozarks.

Flooding

The following summaries cover "significant" or widespread flooding. River and flash flooding can be found in these summaries. If the flooding event accompanied severe thunderstorms or tornado outbreaks, it will likely be included in that event's summary under the "Thunderstorms / Tornadoes" section.

2024

• November 4-5, 2024 - Deadly Flash Flooding and Missouri Tornadoes

2022

• July 26th Historic flash flooding across the St. Louis metropolitan area.

2017

• April 28-April 30th Historic river flooding from three days of heavy rainfall.

2015

• December 26 - Early January 2016  Historic Rainfall and Flooding  (Record Crests on Bourbeuse and Meramec Rivers)
  A prolonged period of rainfall occurred from the early morning hours of December 26th to the evening of December 28th. The heaviest rainfall occurred in a 50 to 75 mile wide swath from southwest Missouri through the Greater St. Louis Metropolitan Area and into central Illinois. Storm total rainfall within this swath ranged from 6 to 12 inches, with lighter amounts extending both northwest and southeast. Some of the precipitation fell as a wintry mix of freezing rain, sleet and snow across northwest portions of the state during the event. The heavy rainfall led to widespread life threatening flash flooding and historic river flooding along the Bourbeuse and Meramec Rivers. Three Interstates were closed due to river flooding. Interstate 70 was closed in St. Peters, Missouri and Pocahontas, Illinois, Interstate 44 was closed in Valley Park and two locations west of Rolla, Missouri, and Interstate 55 was closed near Arnold, Missouri. This severely impacted travel and commerce across the center of the country. Unfortunately, there were six confirmed fatalities due to flash flooding and many business and homes were damaged or destroyed by this historic flooding event.

2010

• July 20 - Flash Flooding - Northeast Missouri
  Several rounds of strong thunderstorms brought very heavy rainfall and flash flooding to much of northeast Missouri and parts of west-central Illinois during the morning hours of July 20th, 2010. Up to 7 inches of rain was observed across the area. Over 60 roads and highways were closed due to flooding along creeks and rivers. Many locations experienced flash flooding, the rapid rise of water which threatens life and property, but the worst flooding occurred in Hannibal, Missouri along the Bear Creek. There were 40 water rescues by boat in Hannibal, MO.
  One fatality occurred from this flash flood. A woman drowned after slipping off a flooded low-water crossing just south of Louisiana, Missouri. In addition, local media also reported that two residents of Hannibal were injured in the flood waters.
• July 21 - Flash Flooding - St. Louis Metropolitan Area
  Strong, slow-moving thunderstorms locally dropped up to 4 inches of rainfall over parts of northern St. Louis City in Missouri and East St. Louis in Illinois in less than two hours during the evening rush hour July 21st, 2010. Flash flooding was reported in communities such as Pine Lawn, Bel Ridge, North St. Louis City, East St. Louis, and Washington Park. The flash flooding was responsible for closing portions of Interstate 55/70 and Interstate 64 in East St. Louis. Around 15 cars were overtaken by the flood waters on Interstate 55/70 near Exchange Avenue where up to 5 feet of water collected. Interstate 70 was also flooded on the Missouri side near Union Boulevard, Goodfellow, and Jennings Station Roads. Metrolink service to East St. Louis was suspended due to flooding at the 5th and Missouri and East Riverfront stops. Local media reported numerous water rescues in East St. Louis. Another water rescue was reported in Pine Lawn. Fortunately no serious injuries or fatalities occurred from this flash flood event.

2008

• September 14  Tropical Depression Ike Heavy Rainfall and Flooding Event
  Tropical depression Ike moved northeast across Missouri and Illinois producing locally heavy rainfall and gusty winds. Many people observed flooding of low-lying areas along local streams, creeks, and rivers. Below is a list of the storm total rainfall reports from 7 am Saturday September 13th through 1 pm Sunday September 14th, 2008. Also included are peak wind gusts.
• September 3 & 4   Remnants of Hurricane Gustav
  The remnants of Hurricane Gustav interacted with a cold front and became extratropical as it moved across Missouri and Illinois on September 3rd and 4th of 2008. The system brought rainfall amounts ranging from less than an inch across the far eastern portion of the county warning area to nearly 7 inches across the central Missouri and the eastern Ozarks.
• Salt River Flooding
• Mississippi River Flooding of 2008
• May 25-26  St. Charles County Flash Flood Event
  Torrential rainfall, on the order of three to four inches per hour, sent small creeks, streams and rivers out of their banks acorss much of St. Charles County, Missouri.  Total rainfall amounts were estimated to be as high as 9 inches in Flint Hill.  Fifteen water rescues occurred and US-61 was closed due to fast, flowing water overtopping the highway in two locations.
• March Flood Event 
  Several waves of low pressure moved along a nearly stationary frontal boundary that remained just south of the forecast area.  Excessive rainfall led to flash flooding of low lying areas and majo flooding on local rivers and creeks for the next week.

2005

• December 14   Taum Sauk Dam Failure
  Overtopping water at the AmerenUE's Taum Sauk Upper Storage Facility caused a massive dam failure during the pre-dawn hours of December 14th, 2005. More than a billion gallons of water rushed down Profit Mountain and overwhelmed the east fork of the Black River and the lower ground of Johnson's Shut-Ins State Park. It swept the park superintendent's home and family at least a quarter-mile away and caused damage to several vehicles that were swept from Highway N into an adjacent field. According to local calculations, the flow of the water at the time would have been nearly 150,000 cubic feet per second, which is the equivalent of the Mississippi River flowing at 7 feet in St. Louis. Fortunately, the lower reservoir captured most of the overflow water, limiting the effects of the dam break down stream. Shortly after the dam break, authorities notified the National Weather Service, and flash flood warnings were issued for locations in the path of the flood waters. Some residents were alerted through NOAA Weather Radio All Hazards and headed for higher ground. The National Weather Service sent down an assessment team, and according to their observations, the water level was at least 20 feet high as the wall of flood water passed through Johnson's Shut-Ins State Park. Fortunately, it was the middle of December and no campers were using the Missouri State Park. Several injuries were reported, which included the park superintendent's family, but miraculously, no fatalities occurred from this dam break.
• January 1-6  Record Precipitation
  A cold front became stationary across southern Missouri and northern Arkansas and acted as a focus for a series of low pressure centers responsible for the record rainfall that fell the first 5 days of 2005.

2000

• May 6-7  - Union, MO Flash Flood

Winter Storms

2021

• Presidents Day Winter Storm
  A winter storm brought up to a foot of snow to parts of the area with very cold temperatures.

2020 - none

2019

• Heavy snow event
  A prolonged winter storm brought widespread snowfall to the region, including historic snowfall amounts in parts of our area.

2018

• Easter Sunday (April 1st) Sleet and Snow Event
  The largest winter weather event of the "winter" season occurred on Easter Sunday, April 1st, 2018.   The primary band of snow developed across northern Missouri and extended into west central Illinois during the late morning and afternoon hours.  Here 3 to 6 inches of snow was observed.  Further south along the I-70 corridor the precipitation was a mix of rain, sleet, snow and graupel.  Winter precipitation totals here ranged from a trace to 2 inches.

2017

• None.

2016

• None.

2015

• February 20th-21st Winter Storm
  A winter storm brought a wintry mix of precipitation to the region which included freezing rain, sleet and snow.

2014

• January 5-8 Winter Storm and Arctic Temperatures
  A winter storm brought heavy snow to the region January 5th. Below is a preliminary snowfall map and totals from across the area. The snowfall was followed by bitterly cold temperatures and wind chills.
   

2013

• December 20-21  Winter Storm
  A winter storm brought heavy rain, freezing rain, and snow to the Midwest form the night of December 20th through the night of December 21st. The greatest ice accumulation occurred from central Missouri to west central Illinois.
• December 13-14 Winter Storm
  A winter storm brought heavy snow to parts of northeast Missouri and west central Illinois, as well as the northern St. Louis Metropolitan Area.
• December 5-6 Winter Storm
  A winter storm brought locally over a foot of snow from Iron County, Missouri to Randolph County, Illinois.
• March 24 - Palm Sunday Winter Storm
  The late season winter storm stands as the highest calendar day March snowfall, the second highest calendar day snowfall ever, and the sixth greatest snowfall event for St. Louis.  St. Louis recorded 12.4 inches for the calendar day of March 24th and 12.6 inches for the 24 hour period of 7 am to 7 pm March 24 -25. This was the largest snowfall recorded since the infamous snowstorm of January 1982 commonly referred to as the "Blizzard of 1982".
• February 26 - Winter Storm
  Heavy snow fell across central and northeast Missouri, as well as west central Illinois. Snowfall totals of 6-10 inches. Some thunder was also observed marking the second occurrence in a week.
• February 21 - Winter Storm
  A winter storm brought snow, sleet, and freezing rain to the area on February 21st 2013. Numerous thundersnow reports across central and northeast Missouri aided in heavy snowfall and accumulation of 8 to 12 inches. Further south and east, the snow mixed with sleet at times, limiting storm totals to only 3 to 6 inches in the St. Louis Metropolitan Area.  The wintry mix included freezing rain the further south you traveled, with up to a quarter of an inch of glaze reported across parts of southeast Missouri and southwest Illinois.

2011

• March 14 - Heavy Snow
  A strong storm system moved across Missouri and southern Illinois on March 14th producing a swath of measurable snowfall. Amounts generally ranged from 2 to 6 inches with localized higher amounts of up to 10 inches in Callaway County, Missouri near Fulton.
• January 31st - February 2nd Groundhog Day Winter Storm
  historic winter storm produced crippling winter weather including heavy snow and blizzard conditions over a large area from the southern Plains through the middle and upper Mississippi Valley into the Great Lakes on February 1-2, 2011. Thundersnow was commonly observed during the storm from Oklahoma into Illinois. The intense snowfall and blizzard conditions completely overwhelmed the infrastructure across portions of the nation’s midsection, leading to airport closures and hundreds of cancelled air flights, as well as the closure of portions of Interstate 70 across Missouri and Interstate 44 across southwest Missouri.
• January 19-20  - Winter Storm
  A band of heavy snow deposited 6 to 12 inches of snow along the Interstate 70 corridor during the overnight of January 19th and the morning of January 20th. Locations north and south of this band received less snow. This was especially true across southeast Missouri where only an inch or two of snowfall was observed.

2010

• December 24-25 - White Christmas
  A combination of two upper-level storm systems brought a white Christmas to the eastern half of Missouri and much of Illinois. Strong winds in the lower atmosphere ahead of the southernmost system allowed low-level moisture to be transported north into the lower Missouri and middle Mississippi River Valleys during the predawn hours of December 24th, 2010. The precipitation started as a wintry mixture of freezing rain, sleet and snow, but quickly transitioned to all snow as the shield of precipitation moved into central and southeast Missouri. The snow traversed eastern Missouri and Illinois Friday morning, with most locations receiving an inch or two of snow. Two mesoscale snow bands, within the larger snow shield, brought a period of heavier snow from Columbia to Troy in Missouri, and from near Cuba, Missouri to Sparta, Illinois. It was in these two bands that up to 4 inches of snowfall were observed Friday morning.
  The second upper-level system then approached the area from the northwest during the afternoon and evening of Friday December 24th spreading several bands of snow across the area (Radar Loop 2) with additional snowfall accumulations on the order of an inch or two. Finally, the second upper-level system tracked south along the Mississippi River during the predawn hours of Christmas (Radar Loop 3) bringing an additional half inch to inch of snowfall to eastern Missouri and Illinois. By Christmas morning 3 to 6 inches of snow blanketed the area, providing the first official white Christmas in five years for St. Louis, Missouri and eight years for Columbia, Missouri.
• January 29-31st -  Winter Storm
  A winter storm brought 6-7 inches of snow to portions of southeast Missouri and southern Illinois Friday January 29th through Saturday morning the 30th of January.
• January 1-12th  A Cold Start to 2010
  The first twelve days of January 2010 were much colder than normal. This period was the coldest start in St. Louis, Missouri since 1979. During those twelve days much of the area remained below freezing. Even though no records were set during this period, it had been quite some time since the area had experienced an arctic outbreak of this magnitude. A moderate snowfall event occurred on January 6th and 7th which aided in temperatures dropping well below zero in many locations when a 1039-mb Arctic high pressure system built into the Midwest. In addition, wind chill readings of 10 to 25 degrees below zero were quite common in the wake of the storm system.

2009

• January 26-28  Winter Storm
  The wintry precipitation came in several waves with the greatest snow accumulation occurring along and south of Interstate 44 in Missouri and along and east of Interstate 55 in Illinois.

2008

• March 3-4   Winter Storm
  St. Louis recorded 10 inches of snow on March 4th 2008.  This was a new daily snowfall record for the date.
• January 31-February 1   Winter Storm
  A major winter storm brought snow to a large portion of the area as it intensified to the south and east of the area. Snowfall rates approached two inches per hour and resulted in rapid accumulation.  Snowfall totals ranged from 1 to 3 inches in central Missouir to around 8 inches in the St. Louis Metropolitan Area, and up to 10 inches in central Illinois.

2007

• December 15   Winter Storm
  A winter storm system rapidly deepened as it moved across the Midwest, producing two distinct waves of winter precipitation. The first round came during the early morning hours of December 15th in the form of a wintry mix. The second round developed during the afternoon across southwest and central Missouri, and intensified as it moved northeast across the St. Louis metropolitan area and into central Illinois. In fact, thundersnow was observed in St. Louis County.
• December 8-12   Ice Storm
  On Saturday December 8th, a strong, cold high pressure system moved from Canada into the Great Plains. This high pressure system brought some very cold air streaming into the Midwest and Great Plains regions. At 2 pm on December 8th, temperatures ranged from the mid 30s in southeast Missouri to the upper teens in northeast Missouri. As this cold air was settling in across the bi-state region, a low pressure system developed over the southern plains which helped draw Gulf moisture northward and up and over the cold air which was locked in at the surface. Sub-freezing temperatures across the northern 2/3 of the bi-state region combined with this overrunning warm and moist air provided the perfect setup for freezing rain. Between Saturday evening and Tuesday (12/11) morning several waves of precipitation affected Missouri and Illinois, bringing up to an inch of freezing rain accumulation, as well as up to 2 inches of sleet in parts of central and northeast Missouri which fell after midnight on Sunday morning.
• February 13   Winter Storm
  An area of low pressure developed across the Texas Panhandle on February 12th and tracked east acorss Oklahoma and Arkansas. As the storm passed to the south of the region, rain turned to freezing rain, sleet and snow.  Snowfall ranged from only a trace across southern Missouri to as much as 10 inches in White Hall, Illinois.
• January 12-15   Ice Storm
  An arctic boundary settled south of the area on the 12th and 13th of January bringing subfreezing temperatures to the area. Three rounds of wintry precipitation occurred during this period, with the first being the most damaging.  Significant tree damage was reported as a result of the storm, along with widespread power outages.

2006

• 30 November - 1 December  Winter Storm
  A very powerful early season winter storm produced significant amounts of snow and ice across much of the middle of the country on November 30th and December 1st, 2006. Over a foot of snow fell from Oklahoma to southeastern Wisconsin and accumulations of sleet and freezing rain in excess of 2 inches were common across eastern Missouri and western Illinois. The last winter weather event of this magnitude occurred on January 1st,1999. The precipitation changed over to all snow during the evening hours of November 30th over central and northeast Missouri as well as west-central Illinois. A band of very heavy snow set up over this region with several reports of thundersnow received. The combination of accumulated ice on trees and power lines and gusty northwest winds produced widespread downed trees and power outages. At one time over 500,000 households and businesses were without power from the St. Louis metropolitan area into central Illinois. Below are maps produced by Ameren Electric Company that highlight the affected customers across Missouri and Illinois, and in the immediate St. Louis Metropolitan Area. It should be stated that some of these same areas suffered power outages from the two severe storm episodes in mid-July of 2006. Some residents were victim of two prolonged power outages, one in extreme heat and the other after a major winter storm with temperatures falling into the teens.
• March 20-21  Heavy Snow Event (West Central Illinois)
  An early spring snow storm brought 6 to 9 inches of snow to parst of west central Illinois. 

2004

• 24 November   Heavy Snow Event
  The first winter storm of the season affected the Mississippi River Valley, resulting in a band of moderate to heavy snow from east-central Kansas into the southern Great Lakes. Rain spread across the area on Tuesday as the storm system moved through the Southern Plains. The rain then changed to snow from northwest to southeast as the storm center moved across the Lower Mississippi River Valley pulling much colder air southeastward. There were several reports of thunder accompanying the heavy snow in the Kansas City area, and also in the region between Quincy and Springfield, Illinois. The main impact of the storm system for the bi-state area began early on the 24th when the rain changed to snow around dawn across central and northeast Missouri. The changeover continued to migrate southeastward as the morning progressed with the transition to snow occurring between 10:00 am and 11:00 am in western portions of the St. Louis metropolitan area. The changeover from rain to snow was also rather abrupt, followed quickly by moderate to heavy snow. Despite the initially warm ground temperatures in the upper 40s to lower 50s, the intense snowfall rates of 2 to 3 inches per hour resulted in rapid cooling of the ground and quick accumulation of the snowfall. Area roadways went from wet, to slushy, to snow covered within an hour, resulting in numerous traffic accidents. Interstate 70 was closed for a period of time between St. Louis and Columbia. The snow ended over southwest and south central Illinois early Wednesday evening as the storm system exited into the Ohio Valley.
• 25-27 January Ice Storm and Snow Event
  A mixture of ice, sleet and snow made area roads treacherous and numerous auto accidents occurred.  Another distrubance dropped a layer of snow on top of the ice and sleet January 26th and 27th.

2003

• 13 December  Winter Storm
  A winter storm brought a swath of snow to much of the region 12/13/2003. The heaviest snowfall occurred across portions of central Missouri where over 6 inches of snow fell.
• 23 February   Winter Storm Across Eastern Ozarks and Southeast Missouri
  A fast moving weather disturbance brought up to a foot of snow to parts of Missouri, Kansas and Oklahoma.  Locally 5 to 10 inches were observed across the Eastern Ozarks.

2002

• 24-25 December  Winter Storm Brings a White Christmas to the Region
  An upper-level trough of low pressure ejected out of the southwestern United States on December 23rd and lifted northeastward through the mid-Mississippi Valley by Christmas Day, 2002. As a result, an area of surface low pressure developed on the evening of the 22nd and moved across the southern Rockies, deepened over southern Texas through the Gulf Coast by the evening of the 23rd, and lifted northeastward into the eastern Ohio on the 24th.
  The combination of the storm moving through the southern United States and into Ohio Valley, along with cold air plunging southward out of Northern Plains, resulted in a swath of snow from southeast Colorado and the north Texas Panhandle, across southern Kansas, northern Oklahoma, northwest Arkansas, southern and eastern Missouri, central and southern Illinois through portions of Indiana, Ohio and southern Lower Michigan. Hardest hit were portions of northeast Oklahoma, northwest Arkansas and southeastern Missouri where up to 12 to 16 inches of snow was observed.

Extreme Heat & Cold

The following summaries cover "significant" or widespread high heat or extreme cold. Dangerous wind chills and life threatening heat indices can be found in these summaries. If the extreme temperatures were associated with a summer or winter storm, it may be found under the "Thunderstorms & Tornadoes" or "Winter" sections. These events tend to more "rare" compared to others, and has not been broken into yearly sections. If wished, that can be done here also (copy and past a snippet of yearly code from another section, then repeat as needed).

• Historic Heat Wave and Drought of 2012 (June/July)
  A historic heat wave built across the Midwest the last four days of June and continued through the holiday week, finally coming to an end on July 8th.  The heat wave has been responsible for 18 deaths in the St. Louis metropolitan area.
• The Easter Freeze of 2007

Historic

The following summaries cover historic events that occurred prior to the year 2000.

• The Great Flood of 1993
• December 1989 Arctic Outbreak
• The Blizzard of 82' 
• St. Louis Tornado of  January 24th 1967
• St. Louis Tornado of February 10th 1959
• Historic Cold Front of 11/11/1911
• The Great Cyclone Tornado of May 27th 1896