Storms in Illinois in 1997

1,367 events in 442 episodes

Every storm the National Weather Service filed in Illinois in 1997, with each episode’s narrative and every event in it. From 1996 the record holds 48 kinds of event with each office’s narrative; before that, tornadoes, hail and thunderstorm wind only, and before 1955 tornadoes alone.

Illinois in 1997 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

Open the live radar over Illinois

The year

Events: 1,367
Deaths: 46
Injuries: 62
Damage: $9.7 million
Episodes: 442

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
Thunderstorm Wind	291	0	4	$1.5 million
Winter Storm	251	6	17
High Wind	190	0	3	$1.7 million
Heavy Snow	124	4	15
Hail	114	0	0	$70,000
Heat	90	26	12
Flood	85	1	0	$2.6 million
Cold/Wind Chill	52	8	1
Dense Fog	38	0	0
Tornado	35	0	5	$2.2 million
Flash Flood	33	0	2	$1.7 million
Ice Storm	19	0	0
Frost/Freeze	19	0	0
Winter Weather	16	0	0
Funnel Cloud	5	0	0
Lightning	4	1	3	$4,000
Waterspout	1	0	0

Every episode, month by month

January 1997

February 1997

March 1997

April 1997

May 1997

June 1997

July 1997

August 1997

September 1997

October 1997

High Wind in Illinois, October 26, 199750 kt wind · 1 event

November 1997

December 1997

Every year in Illinois Every state in 1997 Tornadoes in Illinois in 1997 Warnings in Illinois in 1997 1996 1998

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.