Storms in Illinois in 1998

1,589 events in 657 episodes

Every storm the National Weather Service filed in Illinois in 1998, 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 1998 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: 1,589
Deaths: 21
Injuries: 218
Damage: $39 million
Episodes: 657

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	584	0	25	$3.6 million
Hail	258	0	7	$8.1 million
Winter Storm	129	2	0
Tornado	105	0	39	$24 million
Heat	101	18	141
Flood	99	1	0	$315,000
High Wind	71	0	5	$90,000
Dense Fog	57	0	0
Flash Flood	55	0	0	$2.1 million
Winter Weather	52	0	0
Heavy Snow	50	0	0
Drought	19	0	0
Funnel Cloud	5	0	0
Lightning	4	0	1	$500,000

Every episode, month by month

January 1998

February 1998

March 1998

April 1998

May 1998

June 1998

July 1998

August 1998

September 1998

October 1998

November 1998

December 1998

Every year in Illinois Every state in 1998 Tornadoes in Illinois in 1998 Warnings in Illinois in 1998 1997 1999

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.