Tornadoes · United States · Illinois

Tornadoes in LaSalle County, Illinois

73 tornadoes have crossed LaSalle County since 1950, 7 of them surveyed so far this year and still preliminary, 11th of the 102 counties in Illinois with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.0 years. They have killed 13 people and injured 186. 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
73
Deaths
13
Injuries
186
F4 and above
1
Worst on record
EF4, November 17, 2013

The deadliest in LaSalle County

The strongest

Every year with a tornado

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

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
202677EF3
20242Unrated
20232Unrated
20211Unrated
20201EF1
20181EF0
20175214EF3
20168EF2
20153EF1
20141EF1
201323125EF4
2010417EF2
20061F0
20044812F3
20032F0
20001F0
19971F0
19961F1
19951F0
19912F1
198812F1
19871F2
19861F1
198518F2
19841F1
19782F2
19772F3
19751F2
19742F2
197221F1
19652F2
19612F1
19601F1
19591F2
19562F1
19551F2

Every tornado that crossed LaSalle County

73 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, 20268:14 PM CDTEF1Bureau17.6300
June 11, 20265:31 PM CDTEF1LaSalle4.4500
June 11, 20265:32 PM CDTEF3Livingston11.96007
June 11, 20265:58 PM CDTUnratedLaSalle0.3100
August 9, 202611:16 PM CDTEF1LaSalle4.8500
August 9, 202611:29 PM CDTEF0LaSalle5.1300
August 9, 202611:35 PM CDTEF1LaSalle8.5650
July 14, 202412:03 AM CDTUnratedLivingston3.9100
July 14, 202412:02 AM CDTUnratedLaSalle4.2150
July 28, 202310:25 PM CDTUnratedLaSalle1.720
May 7, 20237:09 PM CDTUnratedLaSalle0.125
October 11, 20216:30 PM CDTUnratedLaSalle0.440
August 10, 20202:59 PM CDTEF1LaSalle0.9150
May 30, 20187:30 PM CDTEF0LaSalle0.930
February 28, 20175:52 PM CSTEF2Livingston5.675
February 28, 20175:26 PM CSTEF3Marshall17.8600$2.0 million
February 28, 20174:58 PM CSTEF1LaSalle2.8200
February 28, 20174:41 PM CSTEF3LaSalle11.5800214
February 28, 20174:27 PM CSTEF0LaSalle1.850
June 22, 20168:53 PM CDTEF2LaSalle8.1300
June 22, 20168:48 PM CDTEF1LaSalle4.5100
June 22, 20168:32 PM CDTEF1LaSalle0.550
June 22, 20168:22 PM CDTEF1LaSalle1.7250
June 22, 20168:11 PM CDTEF1LaSalle0.550
June 22, 20168:02 PM CDTEF1LaSalle1.4250
June 22, 20167:59 PM CDTEF0LaSalle0.375
June 22, 20167:59 PM CDTEF1LaSalle4.3400
June 22, 20159:17 PM CDTEF1Grundy7.0150$50,000
June 22, 20158:50 PM CDTEF1LaSalle6.0150$100,000
June 22, 20158:19 PM CDTEF1LaSalle1.5150$100,000
June 30, 20149:16 PM CDTEF1LaSalle1.550$250,000
November 17, 201310:59 AM CSTEF4Washington–Roanoke tornado46.48803125$935 million
September 1, 20136:42 PM CDTEF0LaSalle1.650
June 5, 20108:50 PM CDTEF0LaSalle0.120
June 5, 20108:34 PM CDTEF2Marshall17.680017$7.0 million
June 5, 20108:32 PM CDTEF0LaSalle0.250
June 5, 20108:28 PM CDTEF0LaSalle1.330$5,000
April 14, 20066:33 PM CDTF0LaSalle0.525
April 20, 20046:50 PM CDTF0LaSalle2.020
April 20, 20046:33 PM CDTF1LaSalle1.530
April 20, 20046:10 PM CDTF2LaSalle9.0400
April 20, 20045:44 PM CDTF3Putnam15.8880812$8.0 million
May 30, 20037:35 PM CDTF0Kendall2.5100
May 30, 20037:16 PM CDTF0LaSalle0.550
May 18, 20005:05 PM CDTF0LaSalle3.0100
June 11, 19971:45 PM CDTF0LaSalle1.030
April 19, 19965:40 PM CDTF1LaSalle0.550
August 9, 19953:50 PM CDTF0LaSalle0.220
May 25, 19913:30 PM CDTF0LaSalle0.150
April 29, 19917:20 PM CDTF1LaSalle10.0100$5,000 to $50,000
May 8, 19886:20 PM CDTF1LaSalle0.5502$50,000 to $500,000
August 16, 198710:15 PM CDTF2LaSalle1.010$50,000 to $500,000
September 29, 19861:55 PM CDTF1LaSalle1.010$50,000 to $500,000
July 9, 19858:30 PM CDTF2LaSalle0.51678$50,000 to $500,000
April 29, 198411:45 PM CDTF1LaSalle0.110$50,000 to $500,000
June 25, 19782:30 PM CDTF2LaSalle0.9300$5,000 to $50,000
June 25, 197811:00 AM CDTF1LaSalle0.150$500 to $5,000
June 30, 19779:35 AM CDTF0LaSalle3.6177
June 30, 19779:35 AM CDTF3LaSalle6.1850$5,000 to $50,000
June 14, 19753:35 PM CDTF2LaSalle1.0167$50,000 to $500,000
September 12, 19744:34 PM CDTF2LaSalle0.110$500 to $5,000
July 1, 197410:44 PM CDTF0LaSalle0.110
August 23, 19721:00 PM CDTF1LaSalle0.110$500 to $5,000
July 14, 197212:00 AM CDTF0LaSalle0.1101$500 to $5,000
November 12, 19653:55 PM GMT-6F2Putnam8.750$50,000 to $500,000
November 12, 19652:05 PM GMT-6F2LaSalle32.117$50,000 to $500,000
September 30, 19611:30 PM GMT-5F1LaSalle2.310$5,000 to $50,000
July 21, 19615:15 PM GMT-5F0LaSalle2.010$500 to $5,000
June 4, 19607:00 PM GMT-5F1LaSalle0.110$50 to $500
September 26, 19595:50 PM GMT-5F2LaSalle5.110$5,000 to $50,000
April 27, 19567:40 PM GMT-6F1Bureau14.4500$5,000 to $50,000
April 27, 19567:20 PM GMT-6F1Bureau14.4500$5,000 to $50,000
December 3, 19558:00 PM GMT-6F2Livingston32.010under $50

Nearby

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