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Sangamon County, Illinois severe weather history spans 943 recorded events between 1954 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 47.7% of all recorded events. It ranks #175 nationally and #4 in Illinois.
943
Recorded events
5
Direct deaths
181
Direct injuries
$69.3M
Property damage
The record
What the Sangamon County, Illinois severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Sangamon County, Illinois severe weather history averages 13.1 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 275 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 137 events fall before 1990 and 806 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Sangamon County, Illinois record is tornado, responsible for 3 direct deaths. The costliest is flash flood, with $27.4M 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 Sangamon County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 450 | 0 | $5.1M | 95 | 1955–2026 |
| Hail | 314 | 0 | $9.1M | 3.25 | 1956–2026 |
| Tornado | 90 | 3 | $25.6M | F4 | 1954–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 65 | 0 | $27.4M | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Flood | 13 | 2 | $0 | 0 | 2000–2024 |
| Lightning | 10 | 0 | $2.1M | 0 | 1996–2019 |
| Funnel Cloud | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2024–2024 |
Decade by decade
Sangamon County, Illinois severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
96 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 87 touched down inside it and 9 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1957-06-14 | EF4 | 2 | 50 | 4.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1963-04-22 | EF3 | 1 | 5 | 42.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 2009-08-19 | EF3 | 0 | 19 | 24.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1995-05-09 | EF3 | 0 | 6 | 50.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1978-07-26 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 8.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 1977-08-06 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 4.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2023-03-31 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 21.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2023-06-29 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 9.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2023-08-06 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 25.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2023-03-31 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 5.4 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Sangamon County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 14, 1957 | Tornado | 2 | 50 | $2.5M | |
| Apr 22, 1963 | Tornado | 1 | 5 | $250K | |
| Jun 19, 2011 | Flood | BERLIN | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Aug 21, 2010 | Flood | ARCHER | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Aug 17, 1987 | Thunderstorm Wind | 0 | 58 | $0 | |
| Mar 13, 2006 | Tornado | NEW BERLIN | 0 | 19 | $0 |
| Aug 19, 2009 | Tornado | WILLIAMSVILLE | 0 | 17 | $11.0M |
| Nov 16, 1988 | Thunderstorm Wind | 0 | 8 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
The impacts of the flash flooding from the late evening of June 17th into the early morning of June 18th continued for another 20 hours in western Sangamon County. In addition, another 1.00 to 2.00 of rain fell over the flooded area from June 18th into the 19th. ||During the afternoon of June 18th at 1:55 PM LST, a 75 year old man drove around a barricade into a flooded roadway on East Loami Road near the Lick Creek South Fork. He climbed to the top of the vehicle, but it was swept away by the rapid current. His truck was found in a nearby pond, but his body was not recovered until the morning of June 20th.||Many streets in Loami and New Berlin, and the rural roads and state highways in western parts of the county were flooded for almost 48 hours. The water finally receded on most roadways by early evening on June 19th. ||See the Flash Flood entry for June 17th-18th for estimated damages due to this historic flooding.
A woman drowned in downtown Springfield near the intersection of 3rd and Capitol after her car stalled in an underpass which was flooded due to a storm sewer backup. As she was trying to push her car out of about three feet of standing water, she slipped partially into a manhole cover and was submerged. The area had received 1.52 of rain, with 1.41 falling during the two hours prior to the drowning. Minor flooding of typically flood-prone areas was reported elsehwere around Springfield.
Heavy rainfall amounts of 2.50 to 5.10 inches fell on the Springfield Metro area in less than two hours during the evening of August 28th. Multiple viaducts were flooded in Springfield, streets were inundated with water at least 2 feet deep, vehicles were stranded and parts of Interstates 72 and 55 were closed. Nearly 250 water rescues were performed by the Springfield Fire Department for stranded motorists. No injuries were reported.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Moderate
FEMA NRI risk rating
194,947
Population (ACS)
$176K
Median home value
12
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 15, 2023 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
| 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 |
| Feb 9, 2007 | Severe Ice Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | DR |
| Mar 28, 2006 | Severe Storm | TORNADOES AND SEVERE STORMS | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Springfield 138
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Sangamon County, Illinois?
943 events are on record between 1954 and 2026, causing 5 direct deaths and $69.3M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Sangamon County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 450 recorded events — 47.7% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Sangamon County?
96 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 87 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Sangamon County?
12 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Sangamon County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Sangamon County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Sangamon County as relatively moderate risk, placing it in the 92 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Sangamon 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
- Saline County 318
- Schuyler County 212
- St. Clair County 895
- Scott County 167
- Rock Island County 629
- Shelby County 312
Cite this page
“Sangamon County, Illinois.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/illinois/sangamon-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.