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Clinton County, Illinois severe weather history spans 354 recorded events between 1956 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 57.9% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,463 nationally and #52 in Illinois.
354
Recorded events
3
Direct deaths
0
Direct injuries
$32.9M
Property damage
The record
What the Clinton County, Illinois severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Clinton County, Illinois severe weather history averages 5.1 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 127 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 57 events fall before 1990 and 297 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Clinton County, Illinois record is tornado, responsible for 2 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $31.7M in reported property damage. In total, 7 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Clinton County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 205 | 0 | $465K | 75 | 1957–2026 |
| Hail | 94 | 0 | $100K | 3 | 1957–2025 |
| Tornado | 30 | 2 | $31.7M | F4 | 1956–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 20 | 0 | $527K | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Heavy Rain | 3 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2003–2008 |
| Lightning | 1 | 0 | $10K | 0 | 2000–2000 |
| Flood | 1 | 1 | $0 | 0 | 2015–2015 |
Decade by decade
Clinton County, Illinois severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
27 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 19 touched down inside it and 8 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1956-02-24 | EF4 | 6 | 36 | 77.6 mi | Crossed in |
| 1982-12-02 | EF3 | 2 | 0 | 10.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1958-04-05 | EF3 | 1 | 8 | 60.5 mi | Crossed in |
| 2025-03-14 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 11.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 2011-04-22 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 18.2 mi | Crossed in |
| 1967-12-21 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1964-03-08 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 13.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2024-05-26 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 18.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2022-05-19 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 16.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 2013-11-17 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 4.8 mi | Crossed in |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Clinton County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 3, 1982 | Tornado | 2 | 0 | $25.0M | |
| May 11, 2015 | Flood | DAMIANSVILLE | 1 | 0 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Sugar Creek was in flood after the area received up to 5 inches of rain in 3 days. Where Sugar Creek crosses Airport Road, it was at least 2 to 3 feet deep. The road was closed with a sign denoting this. However, a 28 year old man in a GMC Sierra pickup truck drove into the flood waters around 530 am on May 12th and was swept about 75 yards down stream. A witness saw this happen and called 911. It took about 6 hours before they found his truck submerged in about 8 to 10 feet of water 75 yards south of Airport Road. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
The tornado caused significant roof damage to a home immediately after crossing into Clinton County. It continued to track northeast, causing additional damage to residences and outbuildings before entering the east side of Trenton. Here, the bulk of tornado damage consisted of minor roof damage, although one business did sustain significant damage to its siding and air conditioning units. The tornado dissipated in Trenton at approximately 10:39 PM. In Madison County the tornado was rated EF-2 with a path length of 3.13 miles and a maximum path width of 150 yards.
A tornado touched down north of Carlyle and tracked eastward significantly damaging a garage and shed, removing portions of a roof on a home, and breaking large branches off of trees. This tornado continued on the east side of the Carlyle Lake, where there were reports and photos of power lines down, multiple trees down, at least partial removal of a house's roof, a barn destroyed, and the majority of another barn's roof removed. The tornado was rated EF1 in Clinton County with a path length of 17.64 miles and a max path width of 325 yards. No deaths or injuries were reported.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
36,954
Population (ACS)
$192K
Median home value
7
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 26, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Sep 7, 2005 | Hurricane | HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION | EM |
| May 21, 2002 | Tornado | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES AND FLOODING | DR |
| Dec 13, 1982 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES & FLOODING | DR |
| Apr 26, 1973 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS & FLOODING | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Clinton County, Illinois?
354 events are on record between 1956 and 2026, causing 3 direct deaths and $32.9M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Clinton County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 205 recorded events — 57.9% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Clinton County?
27 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 19 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Clinton County?
7 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Clinton County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Clinton County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Clinton County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 66 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Clinton County, Illinois severe weather history data come from?
Every figure is drawn from United States federal public-domain records: NOAA/NCEI Storm Events for the event archive, NOAA SPC SVRGIS for mapped tornado paths, FEMA for disaster declarations and risk ratings, and the U.S. Census for population context. Dates are shown in UTC and recent entries may still be revised by NOAA.
Nearby
Neighbouring counties
- Clay County 364
- Coles County 418
- Clark County 232
- Cook County 2,633
- Christian County 442
- Crawford County 281
Cite this page
“Clinton County, Illinois.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/illinois/clinton-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.