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Washington County, Illinois severe weather history spans 326 recorded events between 1953 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 43.3% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,633 nationally and #57 in Illinois.
326
Recorded events
3
Direct deaths
5
Direct injuries
$2.9M
Property damage
The record
What the Washington County, Illinois severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Washington County, Illinois severe weather history averages 4.5 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 117 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 45 events fall before 1990 and 281 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Washington County, Illinois record is tornado, responsible for 2 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $1.1M 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 Washington County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 141 | 0 | $595K | 75 | 1960–2026 |
| Hail | 134 | 0 | $204K | 4.5 | 1956–2025 |
| Tornado | 31 | 2 | $1.1M | F2 | 1953–2023 |
| Flash Flood | 14 | 0 | $50K | 0 | 2000–2025 |
| Lightning | 2 | 1 | $1.0M | 0 | 2012–2014 |
| Flood | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1998–2025 |
| Heavy Rain | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2005–2008 |
Decade by decade
Washington 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: 31 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013-11-17 | EF4 | 2 | 2 | 10.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 1985-04-05 | EF2 | 1 | 3 | 1.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 2011-02-28 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 2.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2009-03-08 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 4.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1976-03-20 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 39.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1964-03-08 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 13.1 mi | Crossed in |
| 1961-09-24 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 5.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1953-03-14 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 42.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2013-11-17 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 4.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 2012-09-25 | EF1 | 0 | 1 | 4.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Washington County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 17, 2013 | Tornado | ADDIEVILLE | 2 | 2 | $0 |
| Jul 8, 2012 | Lightning | NASHVILLE | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Sep 25, 2012 | Thunderstorm Wind | ADDIEVILLE | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Sep 25, 2012 | Tornado | OKAWVILLE | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Jun 19, 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | NASHVILLE | 0 | 1 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Lightning struck a church in Hoyleton, Illinois at approximately midnight. The fire smoldered in the rafters for several hours before erupting into flames. The fire department was not called til around 2 am. Most of the damage was confined to the attic and bell tower, rest of the building sustained major water damage. No one was in building at the time and no injuries were reported. The building is considered a total loss.
A tornado touched down west-southwest of Addieville damaging several homes on the southern part of town. Several roofs were partially torn off or damaged by falling trees. It crossed Interstate 64 knocking down several trees and shearing highway signs off. As the vortex crossed Highway 127, an 80-foot radio tower was destroyed and two large utility buildings were heavily damaged. As it continued to move east-northeast it damaged homes and buildings on two area farms reaching its maximum width at this point. Before lifting south of Hoyleton, the tornado damaged more farm buildings, a grain silo, and numerous large trees.
Up to 7 inches of rain fell between a 6 and 10 hour period causing widespread flash flooding. Numerous roads were flooded. In Nashville, the secondary dam on the Nashville City Reservoir sustained a 6 foot wide breach due to the heavy rainfall. The water from the secondary dam flowed south flooding Illinois Route 15 on the east side of town. No homes were affected, but a couple of businesses had water surrounding them. The nearby Nashville Memorial Park baseball fields were flooded due to the dam breach.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
13,627
Population (ACS)
$156K
Median home value
9
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 20, 2024 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODNG | DR |
| 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 |
| Nov 26, 2013 | Tornado | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND TORNADOES | DR |
| Jun 7, 2011 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Washington County, Illinois?
326 events are on record between 1953 and 2026, causing 3 direct deaths and $2.9M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Washington County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 141 recorded events — 43.3% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Washington County?
40 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 31 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Washington County?
9 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Washington County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Washington County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Washington County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 55 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Washington 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
- Warren County 302
- Wayne County 312
- Wabash County 279
- White County 413
- Vermilion County 691
- Whiteside County 557
Cite this page
“Washington County, Illinois.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/illinois/washington-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.