Tornadoes and Hail in Illinois, April 3, 1974

Name: Tornadoes and Hail in Illinois, April 3, 1974
Start: 1974-04-03T11:05
End: 1974-04-03T15:45
Location: Illinois

April 3, 1974 · 44 events in 24 counties and zones

21 hail, 13 tornado, 10 thunderstorm wind, 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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 2
Injuries: 38
Property damage: $11 million
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 44

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

21 hail, 13 tornado, 10 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Logan

When: April 3, 11:05 AM CST
Where: Logan County
Measured: 1 in hail
Coordinates: 40.300, -89.370

Hail, McLean

When: April 3, 11:20 AM CST
Where: McLean County
Measured: 2.75 in hail
Coordinates: 40.530, -89.170

Hail, Woodford

When: April 3, 11:58 AM CST
Where: Woodford County
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Coordinates: 40.730, -89.020

Tornado, Grundy

When: April 3, 12:10 PM CST
Where: Grundy County
Rating: F0
Path width: 10 yd
Coordinates: 41.370, -88.420

Hail, Sangamon

When: April 3, 12:42 PM CST
Where: Sangamon County
Measured: 2.5 in hail
Coordinates: 39.850, -89.680

Hail, St. Clair

When: April 3, 12:56 PM CST
Where: St. Clair County
Measured: 2 in hail
Coordinates: 38.620, -90.130

Hail, Du Page

When: April 3, 1:00 PM CST
Where: Du Page County
Measured: 1.25 in hail
Coordinates: 41.800, -88.080

Hail, Will

When: April 3, 1:00 PM CST
Where: Will County
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Coordinates: 41.530, -88.100

Hail, St. Clair

When: April 3, 1:00 PM CST
Where: St. Clair County
Measured: 2.75 in hail
Coordinates: 38.600, -90.180

Thunderstorm Wind, St. Clair

When: April 3, 1:00 PM CST
Where: St. Clair County
Coordinates: 38.520, -90.200

Tornado, McLean

When: April 3, 1:07 PM CST
Where: McLean County
Rating: F0
Path width: 33 yd
Coordinates: 40.580, -89.030

Tornado, Logan

When: April 3, 1:08 PM CST
Where: Logan County
Rating: F1
Path length: 16.7 mi
Path width: 177 yd
Property damage: $2.5 million
Coordinates: 40.120, -89.330

Hail,

When: April 3, 1:30 PM CST
Where: County
Measured: 1.25 in hail
Coordinates: 42.050, -87.680

Hail, Cook

When: April 3, 1:30 PM CST
Where: Cook County
Measured: 1.25 in hail
Coordinates: 41.900, -87.770

Tornado, Macon

When: April 3, 1:30 PM CST
Where: Macon County
Rating: F3
Path length: 18.2 mi
Path width: 350 yd
Deaths: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Injuries: 26 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $2.5 million
Coordinates: 39.720, -89.130

Tornado, McLean

When: April 3, 1:30 PM CST
Where: McLean County
Rating: F3
Path length: 7.4 mi
Path width: 350 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 40.520, -88.620

Thunderstorm Wind, Cook

When: April 3, 1:30 PM CST
Where: Cook County
Coordinates: 41.900, -87.770

Thunderstorm Wind,

When: April 3, 1:30 PM CST
Where: County
Coordinates: 42.050, -87.680

Tornado, Christian

When: April 3, 1:45 PM CST
Where: Christian County
Rating: F1
Path length: 8.5 mi
Path width: 70 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 39.470, -89.200

Tornado, Macon

When: April 3, 1:45 PM CST
Where: Macon County
Rating: F3
Path length: 2.7 mi
Path width: 350 yd
Property damage: $2.5 million
Coordinates: 39.930, -88.930

Hail, Cook

When: April 3, 2:00 PM CST
Where: Cook County
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Coordinates: 41.580, -87.780

Thunderstorm Wind, Cook

When: April 3, 2:00 PM CST
Where: Cook County
Coordinates: 41.580, -87.780

Tornado, Piatt

When: April 3, 2:10 PM CST
Where: Piatt County
Rating: F1
Path length: 10.9 mi
Path width: 20 yd
Property damage: $3,000
Coordinates: 40.220, -88.600

Hail, Clinton

When: April 3, 2:10 PM CST
Where: Clinton County
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Coordinates: 38.620, -89.370

Thunderstorm Wind, Clinton

When: April 3, 2:10 PM CST
Where: Clinton County
Measured: 65 kt (75 mph)
Coordinates: 38.620, -89.370

Hail, Bond

When: April 3, 2:15 PM CST
Where: Bond County
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Coordinates: 38.900, -89.330

Thunderstorm Wind, Bond

When: April 3, 2:15 PM CST
Where: Bond County
Coordinates: 38.900, -89.330

Tornado, Piatt

When: April 3, 2:25 PM CST
Where: Piatt County
Rating: F0
Path length: 3.3 mi
Path width: 20 yd
Property damage: $3,000
Coordinates: 39.800, -88.570

Hail, Champaign

When: April 3, 2:30 PM CST
Where: Champaign County
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Coordinates: 39.980, -88.250

Hail, Fayette

When: April 3, 2:30 PM CST
Where: Fayette County
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Coordinates: 39.070, -89.100

Thunderstorm Wind, Fayette

When: April 3, 2:30 PM CST
Where: Fayette County
Coordinates: 39.070, -89.100

Thunderstorm Wind, Jackson

When: April 3, 2:31 PM CST
Where: Jackson County
Measured: 70 kt (81 mph)
Coordinates: 37.780, -89.250

Hail, McDonough

When: April 3, 2:42 PM CST
Where: McDonough County
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Coordinates: 40.550, -90.870

Hail, Marion

When: April 3, 2:45 PM CST
Where: Marion County
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Coordinates: 38.750, -89.100

Thunderstorm Wind, Marion

When: April 3, 2:45 PM CST
Where: Marion County
Coordinates: 38.750, -89.100

Tornado, Champaign

When: April 3, 2:48 PM CST
Where: Champaign County
Rating: F3
Path length: 5.9 mi
Path width: 70 yd
Deaths: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 39.980, -88.230

Hail, Champaign

When: April 3, 2:50 PM CST
Where: Champaign County
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Coordinates: 40.120, -88.000

Tornado, Champaign

When: April 3, 2:55 PM CST
Where: Champaign County
Rating: F3
Path length: 14.9 mi
Path width: 350 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 39.950, -88.070

Hail, Vermilion

When: April 3, 3:20 PM CST
Where: Vermilion County
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Coordinates: 40.270, -87.670

Tornado, Vermilion

When: April 3, 3:25 PM CST
Where: Vermilion County
Rating: F2
Path length: 7.8 mi
Path width: 177 yd
Injuries: 12 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $2.5 million
Coordinates: 40.250, -87.630

Tornado, Coles

When: April 3, 3:30 PM CST
Where: Coles County
Rating: F1
Path length: 14.8 mi
Path width: 90 yd
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 39.450, -88.370

Hail, Whiteside

When: April 3, 3:30 PM CST
Where: Whiteside County
Measured: 1 in hail
Coordinates: 41.820, -89.970

Thunderstorm Wind, Whiteside

When: April 3, 3:30 PM CST
Where: Whiteside County
Measured: 52 kt (60 mph)
Coordinates: 41.820, -89.970

Hail, Edgar

When: April 3, 3:45 PM CST
Where: Edgar County
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Coordinates: 39.630, -87.730

The people who died

As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.

Event	Date	Age	Sex	Where	Kind
Tornado, Macon	1974-04-03				Direct
Tornado, Champaign	1974-04-03				Direct

What these are

Hail: Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
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.
Thunderstorm Wind: Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Illinois in 1974 Every state in 1974 This day in weather history The tornado archive for Illinois, 1974

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: 10008450, 10008451, 10008452, 10008453, 10008454, 10008455, 10008456, 10008457, 10008458, 10008459, 10008460, 10008461, 9994709, 9994710, 10008462, 10008463, 10009033, 10009034, 10009035, 10009036, 10009037, 10009038, 10009039, 10009040, 10009041, 10009042, 10009043, 10009044, 10009045, 10009046, 10009047, 10009048, 10009049, 10009050, 10009051, 10009052, 10009053, 10009054, 10009055, 10009056, and more.