Editing Sikeston, Missouri (section)

==Geography==
The city is situated upon the [[Sikeston Ridge]] which runs north and south from {{convert|10|mi|km}} north of Sikeston through [[New Madrid, Missouri|New Madrid]]. Prior to 1927, the New Madrid-Sikeston Ridge Levee was constructed to protect the area from flooding from the [[Mississippi River]]. In the 1920s, the Little River Drainage District was formed to drain the low land area west of the Sikeston Ridge. By 1931, the levee construction had created the New Madrid floodway.

According to the [[United States Census Bureau]], the city has a total area of {{convert|17.48|sqmi|sqkm|2}}, of which {{convert|17.32|sqmi|sqkm|2}} is land and {{convert|0.16|sqmi|sqkm|2}} is water.<ref name="Gazetteer files">{{cite web|title=US Gazetteer files 2010|url=https://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/files/Gaz_places_national.txt|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=2012-07-08|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120125061959/http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/files/Gaz_places_national.txt|archive-date=2012-01-25}}</ref>

===Weather events===
====1986 tornado====
On May 15, 1986, an EF2 tornado hit the city of Sikeston and destroyed about 100 homes, prompting Governor [[John Ashcroft]] to visit and call on the [[United States National Guard|National Guard]] for assistance. On the same day, the nearby community of [[Vanduser, Missouri|Vanduser]] was also hit by a tornado while storms precipitated flooding to the north in [[Cape Girardeau, Missouri|Cape Girardeau]]. [https://web.archive.org/web/20080828230224/http://shadyacres.mydoghouse.com/history.htm]

====2009 storm====
Sikeston and the surrounding area were hit by the [[January 2009 Central Plains and Midwest ice storm]].  This storm knocked out electrical service to large parts of the city for several days and damaged a large percentage of the trees, making this event the worst natural disaster to hit the city since at least the 1986 tornado.  Restoration of city electrical power was delayed as a circuit breaker at the Coleman Substation had exploded on January 21 just before the ice storm hit. Governor [[Jay Nixon]] surveyed the fog-covered damage by helicopter and visited the Sikeston Field House which was being used as a shelter.

====2024 tornado====
[[Tornado outbreak sequence of May 19–27, 2024#Morehouse–Sikeston–Diehlstadt, Missouri|Another tornado]] would move through Sikeston during the morning hours of May 26, 2024. It caused EF3 damage southwest of Sikeston, EF1 damage in the city itself, and EF2 damage in the northeastern part of the city. Many homes, businesses, and other structures were heavily damaged and dozens of trees and power poles were snapped. Two indirect fatalities were confirmed from this tornado.<ref>
*{{#invoke:Cite|report|author=National Weather Service in Paducah, Kentucky|title=Missouri Event Report: EF1 Tornado|url=https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=1188176|publisher=National Centers for Environmental Information|year=2024|access-date=August 20, 2024}}
*{{#invoke:Cite|report|author=National Weather Service in Paducah, Kentucky|title=Missouri Event Report: EF3 Tornado|url=https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=1188446|publisher=National Centers for Environmental Information|year=2024|access-date=August 20, 2024}}
*{{#invoke:Cite|report|author=National Weather Service in Paducah, Kentucky|title=Missouri Event Report: EF1 Tornado|url=https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=1188450|publisher=National Centers for Environmental Information|year=2024|access-date=August 20, 2024}}
*{{#invoke:Cite|report|author=National Weather Service in Paducah, Kentucky|title=Missouri Event Report: EF1 Tornado|url=https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=1188464|publisher=National Centers for Environmental Information|year=2024|access-date=August 20, 2024}}
*{{#invoke:Cite|report|author=National Weather Service in Paducah, Kentucky|title=Missouri Event Report: EF2 Tornado|url=https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=1188473|publisher=National Centers for Environmental Information|year=2024|access-date=August 20, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite report|author=National Weather Service in Paducah, Kentucky|title=NWS Damage Survey for 05/26/24 Tornado Event in SE Missouri|url=https://mesonet.agron.iastate.edu/wx/afos/p.php?pil=PNSPAH&e=202405292258|publisher=Iowa Environmental Mesonet|date=May 29, 2024|access-date=May 29, 2024}}</ref>
{{clear}}

====2025 tornado====
A [[Tornado outbreak sequence of May 15-16, 2025|significant tornado]] would strike areas of [[Scott County, Missouri|Scott County]], particularly northern Sikeston.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Ruch |first1=Amber |title=2 deaths reported in Scott County, Mo. after storms, possible tornado |url=https://www.kfvs12.com/2025/05/17/2-deaths-reported-scott-county-mo-after-storms-possible-tornado/ |publisher=KFVS 12 |access-date=17 May 2025}}</ref> Forty to fifty homes in Sikeston sustained major damage, where one of the two deaths caused by the tornado occurred.<ref>{{cite web |title=Two dead after tornado hits Sikeston |url=http://www.westkentuckystar.com/News/State/Two-dead-after-tornado-hits-Sikeston |publisher=West Kentucky Star |access-date=17 May 2025}}</ref>

===Climate===
{{Weather box
|location = Sikeston, Missouri (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1950–present)
|single line = Y
| Jan record high F = 73
| Feb record high F = 78
| Mar record high F = 85
| Apr record high F = 93
| May record high F = 101
| Jun record high F = 110
| Jul record high F = 107
| Aug record high F = 106
| Sep record high F = 102
| Oct record high F = 95
| Nov record high F = 85
| Dec record high F = 74
| year record high F = 110
| Jan high F = 44.2
| Feb high F = 49.2
| Mar high F = 59.2
| Apr high F = 70.6
| May high F = 80.5
| Jun high F = 88.8
| Jul high F = 91.4
| Aug high F = 90.3
| Sep high F = 83.9
| Oct high F = 72.6
| Nov high F = 58.4
| Dec high F = 47.7
| year high F = 69.7
| Jan mean F = 36.0
| Feb mean F = 39.9
| Mar mean F = 48.9
| Apr mean F = 59.6
| May mean F = 69.9
| Jun mean F = 78.3
| Jul mean F = 81.0
| Aug mean F = 79.3
| Sep mean F = 72.0
| Oct mean F = 60.7
| Nov mean F = 48.6
| Dec mean F = 39.8
| year mean F = 59.5
| Jan low F = 27.8
| Feb low F = 30.7
| Mar low F = 38.7
| Apr low F = 48.6
| May low F = 59.3
| Jun low F = 67.9
| Jul low F = 70.7
| Aug low F = 68.3
| Sep low F = 60.2
| Oct low F = 48.9
| Nov low F = 38.9
| Dec low F = 31.8
| year low F = 49.3
| Jan record low F = −10
| Feb record low F = −12
| Mar record low F = -4
| Apr record low F = 24
| May record low F = 31
| Jun record low F = 46
| Jul record low F = 48
| Aug record low F = 41
| Sep record low F = 34
| Oct record low F = 19
| Nov record low F = 2
| Dec record low F = −12
| year record low F = -12
| precipitation colour = green
| Jan precipitation inch = 3.68
| Feb precipitation inch = 4.25
| Mar precipitation inch = 4.96
| Apr precipitation inch = 5.50
| May precipitation inch = 4.74
| Jun precipitation inch = 4.26
| Jul precipitation inch = 3.87
| Aug precipitation inch = 3.32
| Sep precipitation inch = 3.21
| Oct precipitation inch = 3.57
| Nov precipitation inch = 4.20
| Dec precipitation inch = 4.08
| year precipitation inch = 49.64
| Jan snow inch = 0.8
| Feb snow inch = 1.2
| Mar snow inch = 0.6
| Apr snow inch = 0.0
| May snow inch = 0.0
| Jun snow inch = 0.0
| Jul snow inch = 0.0
| Aug snow inch = 0.0
| Sep snow inch = 0.0
| Oct snow inch = 0.1
| Nov snow inch = 0.0
| Dec snow inch = 0.4
| year snow inch = 3.1
| unit precipitation days = 0.01 in
| Jan precipitation days = 8.4
| Feb precipitation days = 7.9
| Mar precipitation days = 10.0
| Apr precipitation days = 9.9
| May precipitation days = 10.3
| Jun precipitation days = 8.4
| Jul precipitation days = 6.9
| Aug precipitation days = 6.1
| Sep precipitation days = 6.2
| Oct precipitation days = 6.3
| Nov precipitation days = 7.5
| Dec precipitation days = 8.7
| year precipitation days = 96.6
| unit snow days = 0.1 in
| Jan snow days = 0.3
| Feb snow days = 1.0
| Mar snow days = 0.2
| Apr snow days = 0.0
| May snow days = 0.0
| Jun snow days = 0.0
| Jul snow days = 0.0
| Aug snow days = 0.0
| Sep snow days = 0.0
| Oct snow days = 0.0
| Nov snow days = 0.1
| Dec snow days = 0.5
| year snow days = 2.1
|source 1 = [[NOAA]]<ref name = NOAA >
{{cite web
| url = https://w2.weather.gov/climate/xmacis.php?wfo=pah
| title = NowData – NOAA Online Weather Data
| publisher = National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
| access-date = July 26, 2021}}</ref><ref name=NCEI>
{{cite web
| url = https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/services/data/v1?dataset=normals-monthly-1991-2020&startDate=0001-01-01&endDate=9996-12-31&stations=USC00237772&format=pdf
| title = Station: Sikeston PWR STN, MO
| work = U.S. Climate Normals 2020: U.S. Monthly Climate Normals (1991-2020)
| publisher = National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
| access-date = July 26, 2021}}</ref>
}}