Tornadoes · United States · Illinois
Tornadoes in Whiteside County, Illinois
46 tornadoes have crossed Whiteside County since 1950, 2 of them surveyed so far this year and still preliminary, 28th of the 102 counties in Illinois with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.7 years. They have killed 0 people and injured 5. 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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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
- 0
- Injuries
- 5
- F4 and above
- 1
- Worst on record
- F4, March 29, 1981
The strongest
- F4, Whiteside County, IllinoisMarch 29, 1981
- F3, Rock Island, Scott and Whiteside counties, Iowa and IllinoisMarch 13, 1990
- F2, Clinton and Whiteside counties, Iowa and IllinoisJuly 27, 1995
- F2, Whiteside and Lee counties, IllinoisMay 7, 1962
- F2, Whiteside and Lee counties, IllinoisMay 7, 1962
- F2, Whiteside County, IllinoisMarch 21, 1966
Every year with a tornado
The 24 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Whiteside County. Each year links to every tornado in Illinois that year.
Every tornado that crossed Whiteside County
46 tornadoes, newest first. 4 of them touched down in a neighboring state and ran in, so the record files them under that state rather than Illinois. The 2 at the top are this year's, from the surveying office rather than SPC's published database, and their ratings are marked as preliminary.
| Date | Time | Rating | Where | Path (mi) | Width (yd) | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| April 2, 2026 | 6:02 PM CDT | EF1 | Whiteside | 4.1 | 75 | |||
| April 2, 2026 | 6:09 PM CDT | EF1 | Whiteside | 6.6 | 250 | |||
| May 24, 2024 | 9:12 AM CDT | Unrated | Whiteside | 1.0 | 10 | |||
| July 28, 2023 | 9:16 PM CDT | EF0 | Whiteside to IL | 1.0 | 20 | |||
| April 20, 2023 | 3:56 PM CDT | EF1 | Whiteside | 5.9 | 300 | |||
| March 31, 2023 | 6:48 PM CDT | EF1 | Whiteside | 13.9 | 150 | |||
| March 5, 2022 | 9:13 PM CST | EF1 | Whiteside | 4.0 | 50 | |||
| November 10, 2020 | 3:00 PM CST | EF1 | Whiteside | 4.3 | 100 | |||
| November 10, 2020 | 2:50 PM CST | EF1 | Whiteside | 3.5 | 100 | |||
| November 10, 2020 | 2:38 PM CST | EF1 | Whiteside | 0.3 | 100 | |||
| July 8, 2020 | 4:04 PM CDT | Unrated | Whiteside | 0.3 | 10 | |||
| May 23, 2020 | 2:29 PM CDT | EF1 | Whiteside | 12.3 | 30 | |||
| March 28, 2020 | 8:20 PM CDT | EF1 | Whiteside | 2.2 | 20 | |||
| July 21, 2017 | 7:19 PM CDT | EF1 | Whiteside | 3.7 | 150 | $40,000 | ||
| May 23, 2017 | 2:52 PM CDT | EF0 | Whiteside | 0.3 | 15 | |||
| March 6, 2017 | 10:53 PM CST | EF1 | Whiteside | 1.5 | 10 | |||
| February 28, 2017 | 4:44 PM CST | EF1 | Whiteside | 2.6 | 75 | |||
| March 15, 2016 | 8:33 PM CDT | EF0 | Whiteside | 1.8 | 50 | |||
| July 16, 2015 | 8:48 PM CDT | EF0 | Whiteside | 0.6 | 10 | |||
| June 22, 2015 | 7:16 PM CDT | EF0 | Whiteside | 2.6 | 50 | |||
| June 22, 2015 | 7:16 PM CDT | EF1 | Whiteside | 1.7 | 50 | |||
| June 22, 2015 | 7:14 PM CDT | EF1 | Whiteside | 2.2 | 75 | |||
| April 9, 2015 | 6:02 PM CDT | EF1 | Carroll | 8.3 | 50 | |||
| April 9, 2015 | 5:40 PM CDT | EF1 | Clinton to IL | 12.5 | 75 | |||
| May 30, 2013 | 5:35 PM CDT | EF0 | Whiteside | 0.6 | 25 | |||
| July 5, 2004 | 3:52 PM CDT | F1 | Whiteside | 0.3 | 30 | $10,000 | ||
| September 12, 2003 | 6:38 PM CDT | F0 | Whiteside | 0.2 | 35 | $10,000 | ||
| June 12, 1999 | 2:20 PM CDT | F0 | Whiteside | 0.1 | 10 | |||
| May 12, 1999 | 6:24 PM CDT | F0 | Whiteside | 0.1 | 10 | |||
| July 17, 1996 | 9:00 PM CDT | F0 | Whiteside | 0.3 | 20 | |||
| May 10, 1996 | 2:45 AM CDT | F1 | Whiteside | 2.0 | 100 | $500,000 | ||
| July 27, 1995 | 5:49 PM CDT | F2 | Clinton to IL | 20.0 | 400 | $50,000 to $500,000 | ||
| May 27, 1995 | 8:10 PM CDT | F0 | Whiteside | 0.1 | 50 | |||
| May 9, 1995 | 6:45 PM CDT | F0 | Whiteside | 1.0 | 73 | |||
| June 8, 1993 | 11:39 PM CDT | F0 | Whiteside | 1.0 | 30 | $500 to $5,000 | ||
| June 19, 1992 | 8:50 PM CDT | F0 | Whiteside | 0.2 | 40 | $500 to $5,000 | ||
| June 17, 1992 | 1:20 PM CDT | F0 | Whiteside | 0.1 | 30 | |||
| March 13, 1990 | 4:45 PM CST | F3 | Rock Island to IL | 15.5 | 250 | 1 | $50,000 to $500,000 | |
| May 8, 1988 | 4:15 PM CDT | F1 | Whiteside | 0.3 | 10 | $5,000 to $50,000 | ||
| March 29, 1981 | 6:30 PM CST | F4 | Whiteside | 5.1 | 33 | $500,000 to $5 million | ||
| June 20, 1974 | 6:00 PM CDT | F0 | Whiteside | 0.1 | 10 | |||
| April 21, 1967 | 3:30 PM GMT-6 | F1 | Whiteside | 0.3 | 30 | $500 to $5,000 | ||
| March 21, 1966 | 2:40 PM GMT-6 | F2 | Whiteside | 0.1 | 300 | $5,000 to $50,000 | ||
| May 7, 1962 | 9:30 PM GMT-5 | F2 | Whiteside | 7.2 | 10 | |||
| May 7, 1962 | 9:30 PM GMT-5 | F2 | Whiteside | 7.2 | 10 | |||
| September 1, 1961 | 9:00 PM GMT-5 | F1 | Whiteside | 0.1 | 100 | 4 | $5,000 to $50,000 |
Nearby
Warnings in force in Whiteside CountyThe forecast for Whiteside CountyThe live radar over Whiteside 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.