Live
Active alerts for this county
Extreme Heat Warning
Knox; Stark; Peoria; Marshall; Woodford; Fulton; Tazewell; McLean; Schuyler; Mason; Logan; De Witt; Piatt; Champaign; Vermilion; Cass; Menard; Scott; Morgan; Sangamon; Christian; Macon; Moultrie; Douglas; Coles; Edgar; Shelby; Cumberland; Clark; Effingham; Jasper; Crawford; Clay; Richland; Lawrence
Coles County, Illinois severe weather history spans 418 recorded events between 1955 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 50.5% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,183 nationally and #39 in Illinois.
418
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
43
Direct injuries
$27.9M
Property damage
The record
What the Coles County, Illinois severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Coles County, Illinois severe weather history averages 5.9 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 133 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 62 events fall before 1990 and 356 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Coles County, Illinois record is flood, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $19.9M in reported property damage. In total, 6 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Coles County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 211 | 0 | $2.6M | 85 | 1955–2026 |
| Hail | 115 | 0 | $0 | 2.5 | 1955–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 41 | 0 | $5.0M | 0 | 1999–2022 |
| Tornado | 39 | 0 | $19.9M | F3 | 1958–2025 |
| Flood | 9 | 1 | $250K | 0 | 2008–2021 |
| Lightning | 3 | 0 | $105K | 0 | 2009–2019 |
Decade by decade
Coles County, Illinois severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
40 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 38 touched down inside it and 2 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1974-08-10 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1958-07-11 | EF3 | 0 | 3 | 4.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 2025-03-14 | EF2 | 0 | 2 | 12.9 mi | Crossed in |
| 2021-12-10 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 15.9 mi | Crossed in |
| 1998-03-28 | EF2 | 0 | 3 | 1.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1974-03-29 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1974-08-10 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1960-05-06 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 20.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 2025-03-14 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 2025-03-19 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.7 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Coles County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 5, 2008 | Flood | COOKS MILLS | 1 | 0 | $250K |
| Dec 15, 1971 | Tornado | 0 | 24 | $250K | |
| Apr 30, 1986 | Thunderstorm Wind | 0 | 5 | $0 | |
| Mar 28, 1998 | Tornado | MATTOON | 0 | 3 | $3.0M |
| Mar 10, 1986 | Thunderstorm Wind | 0 | 3 | $0 | |
| Jul 12, 1958 | Tornado | 0 | 3 | $25K | |
| Aug 16, 2012 | Thunderstorm Wind | MATTOON | 0 | 2 | $40K |
| Jul 8, 2009 | Lightning | MATTOON | 0 | 1 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Numerous roads were flooded due to heavy rain ranging from 5 to 7 inches across Coles County. Basements flooded in numerous homes throughout the county. On June 5th, a 72 year old male, drown while attempting to cross a bridge flooded by the Kaskaskia River, about 2 miles north of Cooks Mills. Coles County was declared a disaster area as a result of the extensive flooding.
A tornado touched down 4 miles north northeast of Mattoon near a printing plant. It then traveled east damaging several buildings at the plant. Almost 500,000 square feet of the roof was damaged or destroyed. Contents in the buildings including electronic equipment and over 5 million pounds of paper were damaged. With over 400 employees in the plant at the time of the tornado, only one person suffered minor injuries but didn't need immediate medical attention. After hitting the plant, the tornado damaged some outbuildings at a nearby farm before lifting and dissipating. Damage to the plant was estimated around $10 million.
A tornado touched down three miles north of Cooks Mills and lifted five miles NE of Cooks Mills. Some farm equipment was damaged, as well as, four high voltage power lines. Damage is estimated between $620,000 and $700,000.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
46,777
Population (ACS)
$127K
Median home value
9
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 15, 2023 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
| Dec 13, 2021 | Tornado | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND TORNADOES | EM |
| Mar 26, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Mar 17, 2011 | Snowstorm | SEVERE WINTER STORM AND SNOWSTORM | DR |
| Jun 24, 2008 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Mattoon 157
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Coles County, Illinois?
418 events are on record between 1955 and 2026, causing 1 direct deaths and $27.9M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Coles County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 211 recorded events — 50.5% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Coles County?
40 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 38 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Coles County?
9 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Coles County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Coles County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Coles County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 70 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Coles 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
- Clinton County 354
- Cook County 2,633
- Clay County 364
- Crawford County 281
- Clark County 232
- Cumberland County 180
Cite this page
“Coles County, Illinois.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/illinois/coles-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.