245
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
0
Direct injuries
$5K
Property damage
Hail in McLean County, Illinois: 245 recorded events between 1961 and 2026. The strongest on record measured 4.5. That places the county #454 nationally and #7 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Hail in McLean County, Illinois: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for hail in McLean County is the 2000s, when 93 of the county's 245 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 McLean County archive, hail makes up 32.2% of all recorded severe weather across 7 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #454 for this hazard and #7 within Illinois, putting it in the 85.5 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
Apr is the peak month for hail in McLean County with 60 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.
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 26, 2026 | HOLDER | 1 | $0 |
| Mar 26, 2026 | BLOOMINGTON | 0.75 | $0 |
| Mar 26, 2026 | BLOOMINGTON | 1 | $0 |
| Mar 26, 2026 | BLOOMINGTON | 0.75 | $0 |
| Mar 26, 2026 | COVEL | 1 | $0 |
| May 16, 2025 | CHENOA | 1.5 | $0 |
| May 16, 2025 | CHENOA | 1.75 | $0 |
| May 16, 2025 | CHENOA | 0.88 | $0 |
| May 16, 2025 | KERRICK | 1.75 | $0 |
| May 16, 2025 | NORMAL | 1 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from McLean County
- Thunderstorm Wind 342
- Tornado 121
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A large swath of hail fell from the northwest portions of McLean County southeastward to Saybrook. Most of the hail ranged in size from three quarters of an inch to one and three quarters of an inch. Four and one quarter inch hail was reported in Hudson.
A large swath of hail fell over McLean County from Stanford through Danvers to Carlock and Gridley. The largest hail fell in Stanford with a 4.5 inch hail report. In Danvers, 2.5 inch hail was reported as well as a broken windshield on a truck from the hail.
A tornado touched down 2 NW of Saybrook and traveled to the northeast. Five homes were damaged, several outbuildings destroyed, and numerous large trees were blown down. No one was injured and damage was estimated around $106,000.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many hail events are on record in McLean County, Illinois?
245 hail events are recorded in McLean County between 1961 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths.
What is the strongest hail recorded in McLean County?
The strongest hail on record in McLean County measured 4.5.
Where does the hail data for McLean 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
“Hail in McLean County, Illinois.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/illinois/mclean-county/hail/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.