Tornadoes and Damaging Winds in Illinois, November 15, 1988

Name: Tornadoes and Damaging Winds in Illinois, November 15, 1988
Start: 1988-11-15T14:00
End: 1988-11-15T23:59
Location: Illinois

November 15, 1988 · NWS CHI · 30 events in 24 counties and zones

24 thunderstorm wind, 6 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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 1
Injuries: 15
Property damage: $6.0 million
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 30

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

24 thunderstorm wind, 6 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Cook

When: November 15, 2:00 PM CST
Where: Cook County
Coordinates: 41.830, -87.650

Thunderstorm Wind, Adams

When: November 15, 7:40 PM CST
Where: Adams County
Measured: 56 kt (64 mph)
Coordinates: 39.930, -91.400

Thunderstorm Wind, Pike

When: November 15, 8:00 PM CST
Where: Pike County
Coordinates: 39.450, -90.870

Thunderstorm Wind, Jersey

When: November 15, 9:00 PM CST
Where: Jersey County
Coordinates: 39.220, -90.170

Thunderstorm Wind, Calhoun

When: November 15, 9:00 PM CST
Where: Calhoun County
Injuries: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Coordinates: 39.030, -90.670

Thunderstorm Wind, Menard

When: November 15, 9:00 PM CST
Where: Menard County
Coordinates: 39.950, -89.730

Thunderstorm Wind, Greene

When: November 15, 9:00 PM CST
Where: Greene County
Coordinates: 39.330, -90.220

Thunderstorm Wind, Jersey

When: November 15, 9:00 PM CST
Where: Jersey County
Coordinates: 38.970, -90.450

Thunderstorm Wind, Knox

When: November 15, 9:05 PM CST
Where: Knox County
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph)
Coordinates: 40.950, -90.370

Tornado, Jersey

When: November 15, 9:15 PM CST
Where: Jersey County
Rating: F1
Path length: 0.2 mi
Path width: 50 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 39.120, -90.320

Tornado, Greene

When: November 15, 9:30 PM CST
Where: Greene County
Rating: F2
Path length: 0.1 mi
Path width: 50 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 39.330, -90.230

Thunderstorm Wind, Monroe

When: November 15, 9:30 PM CST
Where: Monroe County
Coordinates: 38.330, -90.150

Thunderstorm Wind, Monroe

When: November 15, 9:45 PM CST
Where: Monroe County
Coordinates: 38.450, -90.200

Thunderstorm Wind, Tazewell

When: November 15, 10:00 PM CST
Where: Tazewell County
Coordinates: 40.380, -89.420

Thunderstorm Wind, Logan

When: November 15, 10:00 PM CST
Where: Logan County
Coordinates: 40.180, -89.580

Thunderstorm Wind, Logan

When: November 15, 10:00 PM CST
Where: Logan County
Coordinates: 40.020, -89.480

Thunderstorm Wind, Sangamon

When: November 15, 10:00 PM CST
Where: Sangamon County
Injuries: 8 direct, 0 indirect
Coordinates: 39.750, -89.900

Tornado, St. Clair

When: November 15, 10:12 PM CST
Where: St. Clair County
Rating: F2
Path length: 0.4 mi
Path width: 50 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 38.520, -90.080

Tornado, St. Clair

When: November 15, 10:28 PM CST
Where: St. Clair County
Rating: F3
Path length: 3 mi
Path width: 200 yd
Property damage: $2.5 million
Coordinates: 38.620, -90.000

Tornado, Madison

When: November 15, 10:38 PM CST
Where: Madison County
Rating: F3
Path length: 6 mi
Path width: 200 yd
Property damage: $2.5 million
Coordinates: 38.670, -89.980

Tornado, Coles

When: November 15, 10:45 PM CST
Where: Coles County
Rating: F1
Path length: 0.1 mi
Path width: 50 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 39.480, -88.370

Thunderstorm Wind, Winnebago

When: November 15, 10:45 PM CST
Where: Winnebago County
Measured: 51 kt (59 mph)
Deaths: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Coordinates: 42.270, -89.130

Thunderstorm Wind, De Witt

When: November 15, 10:47 PM CST
Where: De Witt County
Injuries: 4 direct, 0 indirect
Coordinates: 40.220, -88.970

Thunderstorm Wind, McLean

When: November 15, 11:00 PM CST
Where: McLean County
Injuries: 2 direct, 0 indirect
Coordinates: 40.480, -88.980

Thunderstorm Wind, Lake

When: November 15, 11:00 PM CST
Where: Lake County
Coordinates: 42.330, -87.980

Thunderstorm Wind, Ogle

When: November 15, 11:05 PM CST
Where: Ogle County
Coordinates: 42.130, -89.250

Thunderstorm Wind, Livingston

When: November 15, 11:20 PM CST
Where: Livingston County
Coordinates: 40.870, -88.620

Thunderstorm Wind, Grundy

When: November 15, 11:45 PM CST
Where: Grundy County
Coordinates: 41.230, -88.430

Thunderstorm Wind, Marion

When: November 15, 11:50 PM CST
Where: Marion County
Coordinates: 38.530, -89.130

Thunderstorm Wind, Kankakee

When: November 15, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Kankakee County
Measured: 63 kt (72 mph)
Coordinates: 41.120, -87.850

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
Thunderstorm Wind, Winnebago	1988-11-15				Direct

What these are

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.
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 1988 Every state in 1988 This day in weather history The tornado archive for Illinois, 1988 Warnings in Illinois, November 1988

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: 10003790, 10003791, 10003792, 10003793, 10004644, 10004645, 10004857, 10004858, 10004859, 10004860, 10004861, 10004862, 10004863, 10004864, 10004865, 10004866, 10004867, 10004868, 10004869, 10004870, 10004871, 10004872, 10004873, 10004874, 10004875, 10004876, 10004877, 10004878, 10004879, 10004880.