Heavy Rainfall in the Southern Plains and Mississippi Valley; Thunderstorms in Eastern Colorado on Thursday

A multiple day heavy rainfall event will begin to set up from the Southern Plains into the Mississippi Valley Thursday, peaking in intensity over the holiday weekend. Widely scattered thunderstorms are expected to develop across eastern Colorado Thursday afternoon and evening. Large hail will be the primary hazard. Read More >

For more on the Utica portion of the deadly F3 tornado, please see the NWS Chicago Event Write-Up. For more on Iowa tornadoes that happened that day in the NWS Quad Cities County Warning Area, please see here.

Storm Track Maps
Putnam County & Adjacent Area Tornadoes	Granville-Utica F3 Tornado


Public Information Statement
PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE QUAD CITIES IA IL 435 PM CDT WED APR 21 2004 ...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SURVEYS GRANVILLE ILLINOIS TORNADO... ON TUESDAY APRIL 20TH BETWEEN 515 PM AND 6 PM...MULTIPLE TORNADOES MOVED NORTHEAST THROUGH SOUTHERN BUREAU AND PUTNAM COUNTIES IN ILLINOIS. IN SOUTHERN BUREAU COUNTY...A TORNADO WAS ON THE GROUND ABOUT 1.5 MILES AND WAS ABOUT 100 YARDS WIDE, DAMAGING A BARN...SEVERAL OUTBUILDINGS AND THE ROOF OF A FARMHOUSE ON A FARM. A GROUND SURVEY OF THE DAMAGE ESTIMATED THE WIND AT 70 MPH...WHICH WOULD CATEGORIZE THE TORNADO AS AN F-0 ON THE FUJITA TORNADO DAMAGE SCALE. IN PUTNAM COUNTY...A TORNADO TOUCHED DOWN OVER RURAL AREAS ABOUT 2 MILES EAST OF HENNIPEN...AND TRAVELED NORTHEAST INTO GRANVILLE. THE TORNADO CAUSED SIGNIFICANT DAMAGE TO BUSINESSES...HOMES...AND CITY BUILDINGS IN GRANVILLE. EYEWITNESSES REPORTED THAT THIS TORNADO HAD MULTIPLE VORTICIES IN THE VICINITY OF GRANVILLE. THE TORNADO CAUSED DAMAGE THAT RESULTED IN WIND ESTIMATES NEAR 150 MPH IN NORTHERN GRANVILLE. THE TORNADO REMAINED ON THE GROUND ACROSS THE COUNTY LINE INTO LASALLE COUNTY...3 MILES NORTHEAST OF STANDARD. IN RURAL AREAS...EXTENSIVE DAMAGE WAS CAUSED TO SEVERAL FARMS. WIND ESTIMATES SHOW THAT WINDS CAUSING THIS DAMAGE WERE NEAR 157 MPH...OR A HIGH LEVEL F-2 TORNADO. THIS TORNADO LATER CAUSED DAMAGE TO LASALLE COUNTY ILLINOIS. THIS DAMAGE SURVEY WAS CONDUCTED BY MIKE MCCLURE...ANDY ERVIN...AND SCOTT DOERING. SPECIAL THANKS TO ILLINOIS LAW ENFORCEMENT...LOCAL GOVERNMENT OF GRANVILLE...AND CITIZENS OF GRANVILLE.

Pictures

Boards stuck in ground. Projectiles from Granville Tornado.	High-end F-2 damage. Garage taken off foundation, car blown out of garage. From Granville.





Flattened garage.



Devastated farm northeast of Granville. High-end F-2 damage.

Granville gymnasium without roof.