Hail in Clay County, Illinois

Hail in Clay County, Illinois: 81 recorded events between 1984 and 2026. The strongest on record measured 3.5. That places the county #1,690 nationally and #56 statewide for this hazard.

Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.

The busiest decade for hail in Clay County is the 2000s, when 29 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 Clay County archive, hail makes up 22.3% of all recorded severe weather across 6 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #1,690 for this hazard and #56 within Illinois, putting it in the 45.7 percentile of all U.S. counties.

May is the peak month for hail in Clay County with 23 recorded events, while Dec 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.

• Thunderstorm Wind 192
• Flash Flood 57

How many hail events are on record in Clay County, Illinois?

81 hail events are recorded in Clay County between 1984 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths.

What is the strongest hail recorded in Clay County?

The strongest hail on record in Clay County measured 3.5.

Where does the hail data for Clay 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.