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Hamilton County, Illinois severe weather history spans 179 recorded events between 1957 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 39.1% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,557 nationally and #95 in Illinois.
179
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
9
Direct injuries
$11.6M
Property damage
The record
What the Hamilton County, Illinois severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Hamilton County, Illinois severe weather history averages 2.6 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 52 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 13 events fall before 1990 and 166 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is tornado, with $9.1M 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 Hamilton County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 70 | 0 | $796K | 104 | 1978–2025 |
| Hail | 44 | 0 | $850K | 2 | 1964–2024 |
| Flash Flood | 31 | 0 | $481K | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Flood | 15 | 0 | $380K | 0 | 1999–2025 |
| Tornado | 12 | 0 | $9.1M | F4 | 1957–2020 |
| Heavy Rain | 5 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2004–2013 |
| Funnel Cloud | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2008–2011 |
Decade by decade
Hamilton County, Illinois severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
14 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 9 touched down inside it and 5 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990-06-02 | EF4 | 1 | 12 | 106.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1996-04-19 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 17.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1957-12-18 | EF3 | 0 | 3 | 2.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1957-12-18 | EF3 | 0 | 4 | 19.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 1990-05-09 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1989-01-07 | EF2 | 0 | 6 | 27.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1964-03-25 | EF2 | 0 | 2 | 11.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1961-03-06 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 112.1 mi | Crossed in |
| 1960-02-09 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 24.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 2020-03-19 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.9 mi | Crossed in |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Hamilton County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 19, 1957 | Tornado | 0 | 4 | $250K | |
| Dec 18, 1957 | Tornado | 0 | 3 | $250K | |
| Mar 25, 1964 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $25K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
North of Mcleansboro, State Route 242 and Blairsville Road was submerged. In Mcleansboro, there were multiple reports of culverts being washed out and sinkholes forming. Four miles northeast of Broughton, a water rescue was conducted when a vehicle went off in flood waters on Norris City Road at County Road 1550 E.
The tornado started in extreme eastern Jefferson County. The tornado moved across the northwest side of Dahlgren in Hamilton County. Several homes sustained roofing or soffit damage. One home had about a quarter of its roof removed and tossed about 50 yards. A few barns were damaged. Two travel trailers were overturned. Dozens of mature trees were snapped or uprooted. Peak winds were estimated near 110 mph.
A powerful line of storms surged southeastward through northeastern Hamilton County causing extensive damage. Large sections of metal roofing from a long farm building blew off at County Rd 1300 E, while a smaller metal roof section blew off at County Rd 1700 N/County Rd 1440 E. A row of 10 power lines snapped on Blairsville Rd/County Rd 1800 N. West of Bungay, several trees were blown down in a diverging pattern. On County Rd 1800 N, southeast of Bungay, a large section of roofing was removed from a farm building with a side wall fallen over and an irrigation system was damaged.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
7,916
Population (ACS)
$114K
Median home value
10
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 26, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Jun 7, 2011 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
| Jul 2, 2009 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, AND TORNADOES | DR |
| Sep 7, 2005 | Hurricane | HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION | EM |
| Feb 1, 2005 | Snowstorm | RECORD/NEAR RECORD SNOW | EM |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Hamilton County, Illinois?
179 events are on record between 1957 and 2025, causing 0 direct deaths and $11.6M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Hamilton County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 70 recorded events — 39.1% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Hamilton County?
14 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 9 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Hamilton County?
10 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Hamilton County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Hamilton County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Hamilton County as very low risk, placing it in the 31 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Hamilton 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
- Grundy County 345
- Hancock County 510
- Greene County 193
- Hardin County 87
- Gallatin County 239
- Henderson County 223
Cite this page
“Hamilton County, Illinois.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/illinois/hamilton-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.