April 4th 2025 Murky, Rain-Wrapped Tornado Chase in the Delta

I started my Friday thinking I'd get some work done and then turn in a little early and watch the Cubs home opener on TV from my couch and relax my way into a nap. As I sat at my desk looking at the severe weather setup across the Delta I started to have other ideas. Much of the severe weather risk would be confined to the dense forests of the Ozarks, but there was just enough potential for a supercell or two to develop in the open warm sector across eastern Arkansas and southeast Missouri during the evening hours.

The Missouri Bootheel is about 4 hours from me in Champaign-Urbana, IL with northeast Arkansas about 5 hours away. I could wrap up work at 11 AM and be down there by late-afternoon or early evening, right about when my potential storm should be getting organized.

A couple blips went up near Little Rock as I was making my way down there and they persisted all the way to becoming a full-fledged tornado warned supercell as it exited northern Arkansas and crossed into southeast Missouri.

I'm reasonably sure I documented a rain-wrapped tornado crossing Hwy 142 west of Naylor, Missouri just before 6 PM. Much of the rest of the chase was spent peering through the rain with low contrast, spooky vibes as this supercell drifted through the warm front region which was characterized by deep moisture, low cloud bases, and patchy dense fog.

I ended the chase in Marion, Illinois as a tornado warned kink in the squall line that had developed prompted sirens to sound as I gassed up and got a bite to eat before making the drive back home through steady rain and lightning. I pulled back into the driveway in Urbana, IL around 12:45 AM, exhausted, but somehow content with the spooky experience.