Tornadoes · United States · Illinois

Tornadoes in Randolph County, Illinois

46 tornadoes have crossed Randolph County since 1950, 1 of them surveyed so far this year and still preliminary, 27th of the 102 counties in Illinois with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.7 years. They have killed 2 people and injured 32. 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
46
Deaths
2
Injuries
32
F4 and above
1
Worst on record
EF4, February 28, 2017

The deadliest in Randolph County

  1. EF4 Perryville tornado, Missouri and IllinoisFebruary 28, 20171 killed, 12 injured
  2. F2, Randolph County, IllinoisApril 5, 19851 killed, 3 injured

The strongest

  1. EF4 Perryville tornado, Missouri and IllinoisFebruary 28, 2017EF4, 53.5 mi (86 km)
  2. F3, Perry, Randolph and Perry counties, Missouri and IllinoisDecember 21, 1967F3, 29.8 mi (48 km)
  3. F3, Randolph and Perry counties, IllinoisDecember 18, 1957F3, 20.2 mi (33 km)
  4. F3, Randolph and Perry counties, IllinoisDecember 18, 1957F3, 17.7 mi (28 km)
  5. F3, Randolph County, IllinoisDecember 18, 1957F3, 5.7 mi (9 km)
  6. F2, Perry, Randolph, Perry, Jefferson and Wayne counties, Missouri and IllinoisMarch 6, 1961F2, 112.1 mi (180 km)
  7. EF2, Bollinger, Perry and Randolph counties, Missouri and IllinoisMarch 14, 2025EF2, 33.1 mi (53 km)
  8. F2, Monroe, Randolph and Saint Clair counties, IllinoisMarch 29, 1960F2, 22.3 mi (36 km)
  9. EF2, Sainte Genevieve and Randolph counties, Missouri and IllinoisOctober 24, 2021EF2, 16.5 mi (27 km)
  10. F2, Randolph County, IllinoisMarch 18, 1952F2, 4.9 mi (8 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 25 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Randolph County. Each year links to every tornado in Illinois that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20261EF0
20253EF2
20241EF0
20211EF2
20171112EF4
20141EF0
200931EF1
20083EF0
20042F0
20032F1
20021F0
20011F1
19965F1
19952F0
19942F0
1985213F2
1967115F3
19611F2
19604F2
195911F2
19582F1
19573F3
19551F1
19521F2
19501F1

Every tornado that crossed Randolph County

46 tornadoes, newest first. 5 of them touched down in a neighboring state and ran in, so the record files them under that state rather than Illinois. The 1 at the top is this year's, from the surveying office rather than SPC's published database, and its rating is marked as preliminary.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
March 15, 20265:35 PM CDTEF0Monroe8.7160
May 19, 202512:21 AM CDTEF1Randolph0.525$30,000
April 20, 20258:25 PM CDTEF1Randolph1.375$10,000
March 14, 202511:25 PM CDTEF2Bollinger to IL33.1800$5.2 million
August 30, 202412:45 PM CDTEF0Randolph0.120$2,000
October 24, 20219:02 PM CDTEF2Sainte Genevieve to IL16.5400$3.0 million
February 28, 20177:51 PM CSTEF4Perryville tornado53.51,100112$15 million
October 13, 201412:59 PM CDTEF0Randolph0.350
March 8, 200911:33 AM CDTEF0Randolph3.650
March 8, 200911:27 AM CDTEF1Randolph2.41001
March 8, 200911:25 AM CDTEF1Randolph0.875
June 4, 20083:49 AM CDTEF0Randolph0.725
June 4, 20083:48 AM CDTEF0Randolph1.550
June 4, 20083:30 AM CDTEF0Randolph0.650
November 1, 20042:03 PM CSTF0Randolph0.250
November 1, 20042:00 PM CSTF0Randolph0.340
May 6, 20038:35 PM CDTF0Randolph0.125
May 6, 20038:30 PM CDTF1Randolph0.560
May 12, 20027:00 PM CDTF0Randolph0.130
October 24, 20012:35 PM CDTF1Randolph2.070
December 23, 19962:55 PM CSTF1Randolph2.070
April 19, 19968:15 PM CDTF0Randolph2.050$10,000
April 19, 19968:12 PM CDTF0Randolph3.070$10,000
April 19, 19967:59 PM CDTF0Randolph2.070$10,000
April 19, 19967:00 PM CDTF0Randolph1.560$1,000
May 18, 19951:17 PM CDTF0Randolph3.550$5,000 to $50,000
May 18, 19951:15 PM CDTF0Randolph6.070$5,000 to $50,000
April 28, 19941:18 PM CDTF0Randolph0.333$500 to $5,000
April 28, 199412:30 PM CDTF0Randolph8.060$50,000 to $500,000
April 5, 19854:58 AM CSTF2Randolph1.85013$50,000 to $500,000
April 5, 19854:55 AM CSTF1Randolph0.5100$500,000 to $5 million
December 21, 196710:45 AM GMT-6F3Perry to IL29.840015$5 million to $50 million
March 6, 19612:30 AM GMT-6F2Perry to IL112.150$500,000 to $5 million
May 16, 19604:15 PM GMT-5F1Randolph0.110$5,000 to $50,000
May 16, 19604:15 PM GMT-5F1Randolph0.110$5,000 to $50,000
April 25, 19603:00 PM GMT-5F1Randolph0.520$500 to $5,000
March 29, 19609:40 PM GMT-6F2Monroe22.3130$5,000 to $50,000
March 14, 19599:40 PM GMT-6F2Randolph2.31201$5,000 to $50,000
May 3, 19582:15 PM GMT-5F1Randolph75.9100$5,000 to $50,000
April 5, 19583:05 PM GMT-6F0Randolph4.9100$5,000 to $50,000
December 18, 19574:15 PM GMT-6F3Randolph5.710$5,000 to $50,000
December 18, 19573:15 PM GMT-6F3Randolph17.710$50,000 to $500,000
December 18, 19572:40 PM GMT-6F3Randolph20.210$5,000 to $50,000
November 15, 19553:30 PM GMT-6F1Randolph4.5880
March 18, 19526:21 PM GMT-6F2Randolph4.9100$50,000 to $500,000
December 2, 19505:30 PM GMT-6F1Randolph9.650$5,000 to $50,000

Nearby

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