81
Recorded events
2
Direct deaths
61
Direct injuries
$103.9M
Property damage
Tornado in Champaign County, Illinois: 81 recorded events between 1953 and 2025. The strongest on record measured F4. That places the county #112 nationally and #5 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Tornado in Champaign County, Illinois: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for tornado in Champaign County is the 2000s, when 21 of the county's 81 recorded events were logged. Comparing decades is useful for spotting active periods, but the earliest years are thin because systematic reporting for this hazard began later.
Within the Champaign County archive, tornado makes up 9.6% of all recorded severe weather across 6 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #112 for this hazard and #5 within Illinois, putting it in the 96.4 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
Jun is the peak month for tornado in Champaign County with 22 recorded events, while Jan is the quietest. Seasonality here is a property of the archive as much as the climate: reports cluster where population and spotter networks are densest.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
| Date | Scale | Path length | Max width | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976-03-20 | EF4 | 63.7 mi | 800 yd | Crossed in |
| 1953-04-09 | EF3 | 156.7 mi | 750 yd | Touched down here |
| 1996-04-19 | EF3 | 2.0 mi | 1,500 yd | Touched down here |
| 1974-04-03 | EF3 | 5.9 mi | 70 yd | Touched down here |
| 2013-11-17 | EF3 | 18.7 mi | 440 yd | Crossed in |
| 2013-11-17 | EF3 | 29.8 mi | 880 yd | Touched down here |
| 1996-04-19 | EF3 | 4.0 mi | 220 yd | Touched down here |
| 1974-04-03 | EF3 | 14.9 mi | 350 yd | Touched down here |
| 1963-04-22 | EF3 | 31.8 mi | 200 yd | Crossed in |
| 2016-09-09 | EF2 | 6.3 mi | 75 yd | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest on record
| Date | Location | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 20, 1996 | OGDEN | F3 | 1 | 13 | $0 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F3 | 1 | 0 | $250K | |
| Apr 20, 1996 | SAVOY | F3 | 0 | 12 | $9.0M |
| Mar 20, 1976 | F4 | 0 | 11 | $2.5M | |
| Nov 17, 2013 | THOMASBORO | EF3 | 0 | 6 | $60.0M |
| Jan 25, 1967 | F2 | 0 | 5 | $25K | |
| Apr 23, 1963 | F3 | 0 | 5 | $250K | |
| Apr 9, 1953 | F3 | 0 | 5 | $25.0M |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 20, 2025 | DAILEY | EF0 | $0 |
| May 13, 2025 | URBANA ILLINOIS ARPT | EFU | $0 |
| Mar 15, 2025 | SELLERS | EF1 | $0 |
| Apr 1, 2023 | DEWEY | EF1 | $0 |
| Feb 27, 2023 | CHAMPAIGN | EFU | $0 |
| Feb 27, 2023 | BONDVILLE | EF0 | $0 |
| Jul 12, 2021 | FISHER | EF0 | $12K |
| Jun 25, 2021 | FISHER | EFU | $0 |
| May 26, 2019 | TIPTON | EF1 | $0 |
| May 26, 2019 | URBANA | EF1 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from Champaign County
- Thunderstorm Wind 443
- Hail 233
- Flash Flood 65
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A tornado touched down in a field 3.6 miles south of Sidney at 6:31pm CDT. The tornado tracked northeastward for more than two miles damaging corn and soybean crops before destroying a garage and a large shed. A car and large RV were also damaged. A barn was destroyed less than one mile away before the tornado moved into a cemetery, where it damaged several headstones and two trees. The most extensive damage occurred at a farmstead further northeast, where three outbuildings were destroyed and a house was pushed off its foundation causing it to collapse. The tornado then dissipated in a field 2.5 miles south of Homer at 6:50pm CDT.
This tornado crossed from Douglas County into Champaign County 5.3 miles SE of Pesotum at 12:52 PM CST, then tracked northeastward before lifting 2.7 NNW of Broadlands at 1:02 PM CST. The tornado moved through open fields for the first 2.5 miles in Champaign County, then took the roof off 1 home, destroyed about a dozen outbuildings, snapped numerous power poles and trees, and did roof damage to 6 homes. The tornado dissipated in a field 2.7 NNW of Broadlands.
This tornado crossed from Piatt County into Champaign County 5.5 miles southwest of Seymour at 9:05 PM CDT. It then tracked eastward and hit a farmstead, destroying a barn and a machine shed. Several large trees were also knocked down or damaged at the residence. The tornado then dissipated 5.1 miles south of Seymour at 9:07 PM CDT.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many tornado events are on record in Champaign County, Illinois?
81 tornado events are recorded in Champaign County between 1953 and 2025, causing 2 direct deaths.
What is the strongest tornado recorded in Champaign County?
The strongest tornado on record in Champaign County measured F4.
Where does the tornado data for Champaign County come from?
All events come from the NOAA/NCEI Storm Events Database, the federal public-domain archive of severe weather reports. Dates are UTC, damage is as reported and not inflation-adjusted, and the most recent entries may still be revised.
Cite this page
“Tornado in Champaign County, Illinois.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/illinois/champaign-county/tornado/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.