A strong run of storms made their way thru Fayette County on Monday evening. A couple of different severe storms passed thru Fayette County—but, to clarify, no storm watches or warnings were issued either time. At one time, the City of Vandalia set off the Tornado Siren. The City of Vandalia Police Department explained on their Facebook page that “Dispatch received a citizen report of cloud rotation in the area of Vandalia Lake. It was decided to sound the siren out of caution until an Officer or storm spotter could confirm the rotation. We were fortunate this was unfounded.” The City of Vandalia Police statement goes on to state that a lack of storm warnings—from a severe storm that caused severe damage in Vandalia on Father’s Day of 2017 or the tornado that hit the county in April, both without warnings–led the Vandalia PD to go ahead and sound the sirens before it was confirmed. There were some reports of seeing storm cloud rotation or a potential funnel cloud during the strong storms. No damage has been reported, but multiple areas report several inches of rain.
((((((photo is from Sarah Haslett and David Bunyard, with the circled area believed to show a funnel cloud or rotation))))))