Tornadoes in Illinois, May 16, 1960

Name: Tornadoes in Illinois, May 16, 1960
Start: 1960-05-16T15:15
End: 1960-05-16T16:45
Location: Illinois

May 16, 1960 · 4 events in 3 counties and zones

4 tornado, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.

Tornadoes
Tropical storms and surge
Floods
Wind
Hail
Winter weather
Heat and drought
Cold
Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
Other

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The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $100,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 4

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

Event by event

4 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.

Tornado, Randolph

When: May 16, 3:15 PM CST
Where: Randolph County
Rating: F1
Path width: 33 yd
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 38.180, -89.830

Tornado, Randolph

When: May 16, 3:15 PM CST
Where: Randolph County
Rating: F1
Path width: 33 yd
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 38.200, -89.700

Tornado, McDonough

When: May 16, 4:45 PM CST
Where: McDonough County
Rating: F1
Path width: 33 yd
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 40.380, -90.470

Tornado, Tazewell

When: May 16, 4:45 PM CST
Where: Tazewell County
Rating: F2
Path width: 33 yd
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 40.600, -89.650

What these are

Tornado: A violently rotating column of air in contact with the ground and extending from a thunderstorm, filed with its path, width and Fujita or Enhanced Fujita rating from the damage survey.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Illinois in 1960 Every state in 1960 This day in weather history The tornado archive for Illinois, 1960

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 10009871, 10009872, 10009873, 10009874.