Tornadoes · United States · Illinois

Tornadoes in Iroquois County, Illinois

65 tornadoes have crossed Iroquois County since 1950, 7 of them surveyed so far this year and still preliminary, 14th of the 102 counties in Illinois with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.2 years. They have killed 0 people and injured 18. None was rated F4 or 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
65
Deaths
0
Injuries
18
F4 and above
0
Worst on record
EF3, November 17, 2013

The strongest

  1. EF3, Champaign, Vermilion and Iroquois counties, IllinoisNovember 17, 2013EF3, 29.8 mi (48 km)
  2. F3, Iroquois County, IllinoisMarch 6, 1956F3, 9.4 mi (15 km)
  3. F3, Iroquois County, IllinoisMay 15, 1968F3, 7.1 mi (11 km)
  4. F2, Iroquois County, IllinoisMay 31, 1954F2, 24.2 mi (39 km)
  5. F2, Kankakee and Iroquois counties, IllinoisJune 22, 1990F2, 3.0 mi (5 km)
  6. F2, Iroquois County, IllinoisMay 21, 1956F2, 2.0 mi (3 km)
  7. F2, Iroquois County, IllinoisSeptember 14, 1965F2, 1.0 mi (2 km)
  8. F2, Iroquois County, IllinoisJune 17, 1992F2, 0.1 mi (0 km)
  9. F2, Iroquois County, IllinoisApril 23, 1976F2, 0.1 mi (0 km)
  10. F2, Iroquois County, IllinoisApril 23, 1976F2, 0.1 mi (0 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 36 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Iroquois County. Each year links to every tornado in Illinois that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20267EF1
20257EF1
20232EF1
20212EF1
20201Unrated
20192Unrated
20162EF1
201326EF3
20121EF1
20101EF0
20091EF1
20064F1
20041F0
20011F0
20001F0
19991F0
19952F1
19941F1
199221F2
19911F1
19902F2
19871F1
19821F0
19801F0
19791F1
19762F2
19751F2
19742F0
19732F2
19721F0
19681F3
196522F2
196121F1
19591F1
195626F3
195412F2

Every tornado that crossed Iroquois County

65 tornadoes, newest first. The 7 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, 20269:46 PM CDTEF1Ford9.2150
April 17, 202610:11 PM CDTEF0Iroquois2.950
April 17, 202610:14 PM CDTEF1Iroquois to IN11.6125
April 22, 20265:20 PM CDTUnratedIroquois3.220
June 11, 20267:23 PM CDTEF1Ford6.9100
June 11, 20267:45 PM CDTEF0Iroquois2.1250
June 11, 20267:48 PM CDTEF1Iroquois1.250
December 28, 20253:53 PM CSTUnratedIroquois4.925
December 28, 20253:41 PM CSTEF0Iroquois3.475
December 28, 20253:40 PM CSTEF1Iroquois9.5150
December 28, 20253:31 PM CSTEF0Iroquois2.6100
May 14, 20257:06 PM CDTUnratedIroquois0.125
April 2, 20255:09 PM CDTEF0Iroquois2.2300
April 2, 20255:00 PM CDTEF1Iroquois2.3400
March 31, 20238:20 PM CDTEF1Iroquois4.8300
March 31, 20237:57 PM CDTEF1Vermilion16.5300
October 3, 20213:26 PM CDTUnratedIroquois0.130
June 25, 20218:06 PM CDTEF1Iroquois1.5250
June 9, 20206:24 PM CDTUnratedFord4.475
July 21, 20191:31 PM CDTUnratedIroquois0.425
June 30, 20192:39 PM CDTUnratedIroquois0.125
June 22, 201611:37 PM CDTEF1Iroquois3.1440
June 22, 201610:12 PM CDTEF1Iroquois1.750
November 17, 20131:19 PM CSTEF0Iroquois4.575$20,000
November 17, 201312:45 PM CSTEF3Champaign29.88806$63 million
May 6, 20124:48 PM CDTEF1Iroquois1.3200$25,000
June 21, 20106:24 PM CDTEF0Iroquois0.320
August 19, 20096:00 PM CDTEF1Iroquois2.850$100,000
April 16, 20066:56 PM CDTF0Iroquois0.525
April 16, 20066:20 PM CDTF0Iroquois0.525
April 16, 20065:41 PM CDTF0Iroquois0.525
February 16, 20064:35 PM CSTF1Iroquois0.125$20,000
April 20, 20046:59 PM CDTF0Iroquois5.020
May 26, 20013:10 PM CDTF0Iroquois0.230
May 18, 20007:20 PM CDTF0Iroquois0.550
June 12, 19993:45 PM CDTF0Iroquois0.230
June 27, 19954:51 PM CDTF1Iroquois0.520$5,000 to $50,000
May 13, 19959:25 PM CDTF0Iroquois1.030$500 to $5,000
April 26, 19949:45 PM CDTF1Iroquois1.020$5,000 to $50,000
June 17, 19924:45 PM CDTF1Iroquois0.120$5,000 to $50,000
June 17, 19924:40 PM CDTF2Iroquois0.1201$50,000 to $500,000
March 22, 199110:51 PM CSTF1Kankakee9.0100$500,000 to $5 million
October 3, 19906:55 PM CDTF1Iroquois0.5100$500,000 to $5 million
June 22, 19906:25 PM CDTF2Kankakee3.0100$50,000 to $500,000
July 15, 19873:20 PM CDTF1Iroquois0.210$5,000 to $50,000
May 16, 19825:20 PM CDTF0Iroquois0.110
May 24, 19804:00 PM CDTF0Ford9.0100
July 14, 19797:40 PM CDTF1Iroquois3.850$50,000 to $500,000
April 23, 19763:45 PM CSTF2Iroquois0.110$5,000 to $50,000
April 23, 19763:35 PM CSTF2Iroquois0.167$5,000 to $50,000
May 24, 19754:25 PM CDTF2Iroquois0.110$5,000 to $50,000
June 20, 19748:30 PM CDTF0Iroquois0.110
June 20, 19748:20 PM CDTF0Iroquois0.110
December 4, 197312:00 PM CSTF1Iroquois0.110
March 31, 19736:00 PM CSTF2Iroquois0.110$5,000 to $50,000
April 6, 19729:00 PM CSTF0Iroquois0.110$50 to $500
May 15, 19686:50 PM GMT-5F3Iroquois7.1400$500,000 to $5 million
September 14, 19657:35 PM GMT-5F2Iroquois1.0502$5,000 to $50,000
August 27, 19651:05 AM GMT-5F0Iroquois0.457$50 to $500
June 10, 19616:50 PM GMT-5F0Iroquois0.110
March 4, 19614:30 PM GMT-6F1McLean51.5101$50,000 to $500,000
May 26, 19591:25 PM GMT-5F1Iroquois0.110$50 to $500
May 21, 195610:45 PM GMT-5F2Iroquois2.070$5,000 to $50,000
March 6, 19565:55 PM GMT-6F3Iroquois9.45006$50,000 to $500,000
May 31, 19544:15 PM GMT-5F2Iroquois24.24002$50,000 to $500,000

Nearby

Warnings in force in Iroquois CountyThe forecast for Iroquois CountyThe live radar over Iroquois 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.