Tornadoes · United States · Illinois

Tornadoes in Shelby County, Illinois

39 tornadoes have crossed Shelby County since 1950, 4 of them surveyed so far this year and still preliminary, 42nd of the 102 counties in Illinois with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.9 years. They have killed 6 people and injured 66. 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
39
Deaths
6
Injuries
66
F4 and above
0
Worst on record
F3, August 21, 1977

The deadliest in Shelby County

  1. F3, Shelby and Cumberland counties, IllinoisAugust 21, 19776 killed, 56 injured

The strongest

  1. F3, Shelby and Cumberland counties, IllinoisAugust 21, 1977F3, 26.9 mi (43 km)
  2. EF2, Bond, Montgomery, Fayette and Shelby counties, IllinoisDecember 10, 2021EF2, 41.5 mi (67 km)
  3. EF2, Montgomery, Christian and Shelby counties, IllinoisFebruary 20, 2014EF2, 22.4 mi (36 km)
  4. EF2, Shelby, Moultrie and Coles counties, IllinoisDecember 10, 2021EF2, 15.9 mi (26 km)
  5. F2, Shelby County, IllinoisJune 1, 1999F2, 15.5 mi (25 km)
  6. EF2, Macon and Shelby counties, IllinoisOctober 13, 2014EF2, 10.0 mi (16 km)
  7. F2, Shelby County, IllinoisJune 2, 1990F2, 8.0 mi (13 km)
  8. F2, Shelby County, IllinoisOctober 6, 1955F2, 1.0 mi (2 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 24 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Shelby County. Each year links to every tornado in Illinois that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20264EF1
20252EF1
202121EF2
20191EF0
201431EF2
20112EF0
20092EF0
20081EF0
20062F1
20021F0
20011F0
200011F1
199914F2
19983F0
19952F1
19931F0
199012F2
19881F0
19771656F3
19742F0
19691F1
196121F1
19591F1
19551F2

Every tornado that crossed Shelby County

39 tornadoes, newest first. 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
June 17, 20265:05 PM CDTEF1Christian10.7700
June 17, 20265:27 PM CDTEF1Shelby3.475
June 21, 20263:22 PM CDTEF0Shelby1.3150
June 21, 20268:07 PM CDTUnratedShelby0.120
March 14, 202511:50 PM CDTEF1Shelby2.3100
March 14, 202511:47 PM CDTEF1Shelby5.175
December 10, 20219:50 PM CSTEF2Shelby15.9200
December 10, 20218:53 PM CSTEF2Bond41.56901$10,000
August 12, 20199:40 PM CDTEF0Christian1.975$20,000
October 13, 20143:54 PM CDTEF2Macon10.0200$260,000
February 20, 20144:40 PM CSTEF0Shelby0.350
February 20, 20144:09 PM CSTEF2Montgomery22.42001$600,000
June 15, 20113:30 PM CDTEF0Shelby0.320$20,000
June 15, 20113:25 PM CDTEF0Shelby0.310
May 13, 200912:22 AM CDTEF0Shelby1.450$45,000
May 13, 200912:12 AM CDTEF0Shelby0.640$60,000
May 30, 20088:33 PM CDTEF0Shelby1.130
April 2, 20066:14 PM CDTF1Christian6.0150
January 2, 20068:02 AM CSTF1Shelby0.135$10,000
May 1, 20024:20 PM CDTF0Shelby0.120
July 8, 20015:14 PM CDTF0Shelby0.120
June 20, 20002:32 PM CDTF1Shelby24.03001$70,000
June 1, 19998:06 PM CDTF2Shelby15.54504$2.0 million
April 30, 19984:30 PM CDTF0Shelby0.230
April 7, 19986:40 PM CDTF0Shelby0.130
April 7, 19986:28 PM CDTF0Shelby0.130
May 9, 19958:30 PM CDTF0Shelby1.0220
May 9, 19957:56 PM CDTF1Shelby0.110
June 4, 19937:22 AM CDTF0Shelby3.050
June 2, 19904:30 PM CDTF2Shelby8.06002$500,000 to $5 million
April 22, 19887:04 PM CDTF0Shelby0.520$5,000 to $50,000
August 21, 19771:00 PM CDTF3Shelby26.977656$500,000 to $5 million
August 10, 19745:00 PM CDTF0Shelby0.110$50 to $500
June 22, 19743:04 PM CDTF0Shelby0.110
June 24, 19692:25 PM GMT-5F1Shelby0.110$500 to $5,000
July 28, 19614:30 PM GMT-5F0Shelby0.110$5,000 to $50,000
March 6, 19611:30 AM GMT-6F1Jersey117.9771$50,000 to $500,000
March 26, 195912:40 AM GMT-6F1Shelby0.110
October 6, 19558:00 PM GMT-5F2Shelby1.010$500 to $5,000

Nearby

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