200
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
1
Direct injuries
$292K
Property damage
Thunderstorm Wind in Lee County, Illinois: 200 recorded events between 1956 and 2026. The strongest on record measured 87. That places the county #1,032 nationally and #42 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Thunderstorm Wind in Lee County, Illinois: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for thunderstorm wind in Lee County is the 2000s, when 53 of the county's 200 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 Lee County archive, thunderstorm wind makes up 51.4% of all recorded severe weather across 8 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #1,032 for this hazard and #42 within Illinois, putting it in the 67.0 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
Jun is the peak month for thunderstorm wind in Lee County with 55 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.
Significant events
Deadliest on record
| Date | Location | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 12, 2001 | COUNTYWIDE | 65 | 0 | 1 | $55K |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 2, 2026 | DIXON | 56 | $0 |
| Jul 10, 2025 | WEST BROOKLYN | 50 | $0 |
| May 15, 2025 | KINGDOM | 60 | $0 |
| Mar 15, 2025 | COMPTON | 56 | $0 |
| Jul 16, 2024 | LEE | 50 | $0 |
| Jun 16, 2024 | GRAND DETOUR | 52 | $0 |
| Jul 29, 2023 | AMBOY | 61 | $0 |
| Jul 29, 2023 | DIXON | 61 | $0 |
| Jul 28, 2023 | COMPTON | 56 | $0 |
| Jul 15, 2023 | AMBOY | 52 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from Lee County
- Hail 115
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Winds were estimated in excess of 80 mph and upwards of 100 mph for a 13 mile swath. A large outbuilding bolted to its foundation was destroyed. One part of the barn wall was lifted taking a portion of the foundation with it. Numerous large trees were snapped or uprooted, including one that fell onto the front portion of a house. In Walton, four large grain storage bins were destroyed. Also in Walton, a metal outbuilding was destroyed with debris thrown over 200 yards. Shingle damage was also noted on a few homes.
Photos shared on social media showed a storage shed that had been destroyed with debris blown across a 2 to 4 block area, including a large section of the shed landing on the roof of a house near the intersection of 2nd Street and College Avenue.
Sporadic wind damage was noted over eastern Lee County. Several wooden power poles were broken on route 52 northwest of Mendota. Several hardwood trees were snapped on Route 251 near Cottage Hill Road. An irrigation pivot was toppled in the same area.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many thunderstorm wind events are on record in Lee County, Illinois?
200 thunderstorm wind events are recorded in Lee County between 1956 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths.
What is the strongest thunderstorm wind recorded in Lee County?
The strongest thunderstorm wind on record in Lee County measured 87.
Where does the thunderstorm wind data for Lee 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
“Thunderstorm Wind in Lee County, Illinois.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/illinois/lee-county/thunderstorm-wind/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.