CHAMPAIGN, IL (Chambana Today) – Champaign County was under two separate tornado warnings on Friday night, as the National Weather Service (NWS) issued alerts in response to severe weather moving through the region. The first tornado warning was issued at 11:54 p.m., lasting until 1 a.m. on Saturday. A half-hour later, at 12:23 a.m., a second tornado warning was issued, prompting local tornado sirens to sound throughout Champaign-Urbana, waking many residents in the process.
The NWS warning indicated a severe thunderstorm capable of producing a tornado, with “quarter-size hail” reported in the area near the Village of Pesotum, roughly 14 miles south of Champaign-Urbana. The storm was traveling northeast at 60 miles per hour. The warning urged residents to seek shelter immediately, advising that flying debris would be hazardous to those outside and that damage to buildings, vehicles, and trees was expected.
In addition to the NWS alerts, the University of Illinois sent out an Illini-Alert at 12:20 a.m., advising students and staff to shelter indoors. Jeff Frame, a professor and atmospheric scientist at the University, posted an update on X (formerly Twitter), reassuring the public that although the tornado warned circulations were broad, precautions should still be followed. He also noted that the worst of the storms were expected to hit within the next 15 minutes.
By 12:43 a.m., the sirens stopped completely, signaling that the immediate danger had passed. The tornado and wind threats were part of a larger severe weather event sweeping through the Midwest, with multiple tornadoes also reported in the St. Louis area.