Click picture to enlarge.
 

More of our own pictures are below (updated 5/15/09): 

(Keep clicking gallery pics below until largest image appears)

Note:  The NWS Radar image is courtesy of the Paducah, KY, NWS office, and also Stu Ostro of The Weather Channel (who made us aware of it in his article noted below.)

Update, 5/16/09:  Added radar loop image (YouTube link) that was sent to us by Keith Larson of S & L Audio.  This is not nearly as impressive as the loop that WSIL-TV3 was displaying on their broadcast on May 8, but you can get a little idea of it…  Scroll down for more YouTube links — some are pretty scary!!!

5/15/09: We found an excellent article on the storm, written by Stu Ostro of The Weather Channel:  http://www.weather.com/blog/weather/8_19404.html
It appears the most accurate name for this event (as it hit the SI area) would be a MCV (Mesoscale Convective Vortex.)  Paul wanted to call it a “Saluki” - doggone it.

5/14/09:  NWS Paducah has a very good summary of events at :  http://www.crh.noaa.gov/news/display_cmsstory.php?wfo=pah&storyid=27320&source=0 .  Do not be mislead by the “tornado” headline — there is a lot more information on the “comma head” and great radar images in the article.  One source called the storm a “bookend vortex” which also seems appropriate.  The NWS radar images unfortunately do not show fully how impressive, defined, and strong, the rotation was, as we watched the radar loop on local TV and Internet.  (Paul wishes he had thought to try to record it…)

We also found a gallery of 230* pictures of Carbondale storm damage  here.  (Skip past the volleyball(?) court stuff to get to the good pics.)
*As of this writing, 5/16/09.

There is a ton of good stuff on YouTube now, too, such as:

Illinois Hurricane radar loop, 8 May 2009
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Lpw1kTspSE&feature=related

9th Floor Inland Hurricane at SIU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AFpMutxtsXQ

Inland Hurricane derecho So Illinois May 8, 2009
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGJmOeDEBtw&NR=1

Tree Falling (some profanity)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NNJnLsrzRGw&feature=related

and:

May Inland Hurricane Storm 2009  (Funny, some profanity,
and a classic line:  “FedEx is still delivering!!”)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dIWaG4-5Fk0&NR=1