Storms in Illinois in 1961
Every storm the National Weather Service filed in Illinois in 1961, with each episode’s narrative and every event in it. Before 1996 the record holds tornadoes, hail and thunderstorm wind only, without narratives; floods, heat, winter storms and the other kinds begin in 1996.
Illinois in 1961 on the map
Every episode with a place to put it, colored by kind of event.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The year
- Events
- 113
- Deaths
- 2
- Injuries
- 144
- Damage
- $42 million
- Episodes
- 35
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.
By kind of event
| Kind of event | Events | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tornado | 46 | 2 | 144 | $42 million |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 41 | 0 | 0 | |
| Hail | 26 | 0 | 0 |
Every episode, month by month
March 1961
April 1961
- Damaging Wind in Illinois, April 20, 1961
- Hail in Illinois, April 22, 1961
- Tornado and Hail in Illinois, April 23, 1961
- Tornadoes and Hail in Illinois, April 24, 1961
- Hail in Illinois, April 25, 1961
May 1961
- Hail in Illinois, May 5, 1961
- Hail and Damaging Wind in Illinois, May 6, 1961
- Tornadoes and Hail in Illinois, May 14, 1961
June 1961
- Damaging Wind in Illinois, June 2, 1961
- Damaging Winds in Illinois, June 6, 1961
- Tornado and Hail in Illinois, June 7, 1961
- Damaging Wind in Illinois, June 8, 1961
- Tornado in Illinois, June 10, 1961
- Damaging Winds in Illinois, June 13, 1961
- Tornado in Illinois, June 14, 1961
- Damaging Wind in Illinois, June 22, 1961
- Damaging Wind in Illinois, June 24, 1961
July 1961
- Damaging Winds in Illinois, July 4, 1961
- Damaging Wind in Illinois, July 17, 1961
- Tornadoes and Damaging Wind in Illinois, July 21, 1961
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Illinois, July 22, 1961
- Tornado in Illinois, July 28, 1961
- Damaging Wind in Illinois, July 30, 1961
August 1961
- Tornado and Damaging Winds in Illinois, August 1, 1961
- Hail in Illinois, August 4, 1961
- Hail in Illinois, August 5, 1961
- Tornado in Illinois, August 19, 1961
September 1961
- Tornado and Damaging Wind in Illinois, September 1, 1961
- Hail in Illinois, September 2, 1961
- Damaging Wind in Illinois, September 21, 1961
- Tornado and Damaging Wind in Illinois, September 22, 1961
- Tornadoes and Hail in Illinois, September 24, 1961
- Tornadoes and Damaging Winds in Illinois, September 30, 1961
More
Every year in IllinoisEvery state in 1961Tornadoes in Illinois in 196119601962
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.