Tornadoes · United States · Illinois

Tornadoes in Hancock County, Illinois

33 tornadoes have crossed Hancock County since 1950, 4 of them surveyed so far this year and still preliminary, 51st of the 102 counties in Illinois with a tornado on record, an average of one every 2.3 years. They have killed 0 people and injured 22. 1 was rated F4 or EF4 and above.

The rating scale

Tracks are drawn in the color of the rating. The United States rated tornadoes on Ted Fujita’s F scale until 31 January 2007 and on the Enhanced Fujita scale after it. Both run from 0 to 5, and both rate the damage rather than measure the wind: the speeds are what that damage is taken to imply.

  1. F0 / EF040 to 72 mph on the F scale, 65 to 85 mph on the EF scale

    Light damage. Surface peeled off some roofs, gutters and siding damaged, branches broken, shallow-rooted trees pushed over.

  2. F1 / EF173 to 112 mph on the F scale, 86 to 110 mph on the EF scale

    Moderate damage. Roofs badly stripped, mobile homes overturned or badly damaged, exterior doors lost, windows broken.

  3. F2 / EF2113 to 157 mph on the F scale, 111 to 135 mph on the EF scale

    Considerable damage. Roofs torn off well-built houses, frame homes shifted on their foundations, mobile homes destroyed, large trees snapped or uprooted, cars lifted off the ground.

  4. F3 / EF3158 to 206 mph on the F scale, 136 to 165 mph on the EF scale

    Severe damage. Whole stories of well-built houses destroyed, large buildings badly damaged, trains overturned, trees debarked, heavy cars lifted and thrown.

  5. F4 / EF4207 to 260 mph on the F scale, 166 to 200 mph on the EF scale

    Devastating damage. Well-built houses leveled, structures with weak foundations moved some distance, cars thrown and large missiles generated.

  6. F5 / EF5261 to 318 mph on the F scale, over 200 mph on the EF scale

    Incredible damage. Strong frame houses swept off their foundations, car-sized missiles thrown more than 100 meters, steel-reinforced concrete badly damaged, high-rise buildings deformed.

  7. Unrated

    The survey recorded a tornado but could not put a number on it, most often because it crossed open country and damaged nothing a rating can be read from.

Now

Tornadoes
33
Deaths
0
Injuries
22
F4 and above
1
Worst on record
F4, May 13, 1995

The strongest

  1. F4, Hancock, Henderson and Warren counties, IllinoisMay 13, 1995F4, 50.0 mi (80 km)
  2. F3, Hancock County, IllinoisApril 13, 1974F3, 11.0 mi (18 km)
  3. F3, Hancock County, IllinoisApril 8, 1999F3, 7.5 mi (12 km)
  4. F3, Hancock County, IllinoisSeptember 30, 1973F3, 0.1 mi (0 km)
  5. F2, Adams, Hancock, McDonough and Warren counties, IllinoisMay 10, 2003F2, 69.2 mi (111 km)
  6. F2, Hancock, Schuyler and Fulton counties, IllinoisMarch 8, 1990F2, 42.0 mi (68 km)
  7. F2, Hancock and McDonough counties, IllinoisApril 13, 1974F2, 19.5 mi (31 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 19 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Hancock County. Each year links to every tornado in Illinois that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20264EF1
20231Unrated
20191EF1
20171EF0
20083EF1
20071EF0
200314F2
19992F3
19972F0
199517F4
19903F2
198611F1
19841F0
19812F1
1974210F3
19734F3
19611F1
19571F1
19551F1

Every tornado that crossed Hancock County

33 tornadoes, newest first. 1 of them touched down in a neighboring state and ran in, so the record files it under that state rather than Illinois. The 4 at the top are this year's, from the surveying office rather than SPC's published database, and their ratings are marked as preliminary.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
April 17, 20266:55 PM CDTEF1Hancock5.7150
April 17, 20267:13 PM CDTEF1Hancock6.075
June 11, 20264:15 PM CDTUnratedHancock0.20
June 17, 20269:05 AM CDTEF1Lee to IL1.3100
August 6, 20235:40 PM CDTUnratedHancock8.020
May 22, 20198:17 PM CDTEF1Hancock0.530
October 14, 20176:25 PM CDTEF0Hancock0.825
April 10, 20086:35 PM CDTEF0Hancock0.875$30,000
April 10, 20086:33 PM CDTEF0Hancock0.250$20,000
April 10, 20086:30 PM CDTEF1Hancock1.6150$100,000
June 2, 20078:45 PM CDTEF0Hancock0.125$5,000
May 10, 20036:36 PM CDTF2Adams69.23004$1.1 million
April 8, 19997:35 PM CDTF0Henderson20.010
April 8, 19996:35 PM CDTF3Hancock7.5200$15 million
April 30, 19972:03 PM CDTF0Hancock12.010
April 30, 19971:50 PM CDTF0Hancock1.020$400,000
May 13, 19954:18 PM CDTF4Hancock50.01,0007$5 million to $50 million
June 16, 19905:00 PM CDTF1Hancock0.110$5,000 to $50,000
June 13, 19907:15 PM CDTF0Hancock0.120
March 8, 19903:15 PM CSTF2Hancock42.010$50,000 to $500,000
June 30, 19862:40 AM CDTF1Hancock0.3101$5,000 to $50,000
April 29, 19849:50 PM CDTF0Hancock0.110under $50
June 21, 19818:47 PM CDTF1Hancock0.110$500 to $5,000
June 21, 19818:14 PM CDTF1Hancock0.110$500,000 to $5 million
April 13, 19748:00 PM CDTF2Hancock19.550010$500,000 to $5 million
April 13, 19747:40 PM CDTF3Hancock11.0700$500,000 to $5 million
September 30, 19736:00 PM CDTF3Hancock0.110
June 16, 19737:40 PM CDTF1Hancock0.110
June 2, 19734:00 PM CDTF1Hancock0.110
May 8, 19739:00 PM CDTF1Hancock0.110
July 21, 19613:15 PM GMT-5F1Adams147.410$50,000 to $500,000
May 9, 19578:10 PM GMT-5F1Hancock2.7200$500 to $5,000
April 23, 19557:30 PM GMT-6F1Hancock8.010$500 to $5,000

Nearby

Warnings in force in Hancock CountyThe forecast for Hancock CountyThe live radar over Hancock CountyEvery county in Illinois

What this means

Ratings are the survey's, read off the damage rather than measured; the rating scale is above. Tornado counts rise through the record as reporting improved, so a year in the 1950s is not comparable with one today except for the strongest tornadoes, which were always noticed.

Sources

NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database, 1950-2025, the official record kept by NOAA's Storm Prediction Center.