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Woodford County, Illinois severe weather history spans 437 recorded events between 1954 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 46.5% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,110 nationally and #35 in Illinois.
437
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
14
Direct injuries
$75.1M
Property damage
The record
What the Woodford County, Illinois severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Woodford County, Illinois severe weather history averages 6.1 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 126 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 56 events fall before 1990 and 381 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is tornado, with $27.5M 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 Woodford County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 203 | 0 | $1.9M | 83 | 1966–2025 |
| Hail | 137 | 0 | $400K | 4 | 1974–2026 |
| Tornado | 50 | 0 | $27.5M | F4 | 1954–2024 |
| Flash Flood | 33 | 0 | $21.2M | 0 | 2001–2022 |
| Flood | 8 | 0 | $23.8M | 0 | 2009–2020 |
| Lightning | 6 | 0 | $399K | 0 | 2008–2024 |
Decade by decade
Woodford County, Illinois severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
56 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 48 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013-11-17 | EF4 | 3 | 125 | 46.4 mi | Crossed in |
| 2004-07-13 | EF4 | 0 | 3 | 9.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 2017-02-28 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 17.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 2010-06-05 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 2.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2010-06-05 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.8 mi | Crossed in |
| 2003-05-10 | EF2 | 0 | 4 | 12.5 mi | Crossed in |
| 2003-05-30 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 7.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1986-09-24 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 2.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1976-03-26 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1975-05-30 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 4.3 mi | Crossed in |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Woodford County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 17, 2013 | Tornado | METAMORA | 0 | 4 | $25.0M |
| May 11, 2003 | Tornado | EUREKA | 0 | 4 | $0 |
| Jul 13, 2004 | Tornado | METAMORA | 0 | 3 | $0 |
| Jul 6, 2010 | Lightning | WASHBURN | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| May 18, 2000 | Tornado | METAMORA | 0 | 1 | $5K |
| Nov 17, 1988 | Thunderstorm Wind | 0 | 1 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
This tornado crossed the border from Tazewell County at 11:12 AM CST, then tracked northeastward across rural Woodford County before entering into far southern LaSalle County in National Weather Service Chicago's County Warning Area (CWA) at 11:33 AM CST. It weakened a bit to EF3 intensity but remained between 1/4 and 1/2 mile wide as it crossed into Woodford County. During much of its time in Woodford County, the tornado traveled across open fields, impacting dozens of farmsteads. Nearly 70 farm buildings and 7 homes were destroyed. Major damage occurred to 17 homes, while 23 others received minor damage. About 100 vehicles were damaged, including several semi trucks at a truck stop north of Minonk. Three people were injured in overturned semi trucks. One cell tower was toppled and hundreds of power poles and trees were snapped. Total damage from the tornado was estimated at $25 million.
Around 276 homes, two businesses, a fire station and numerous roads along the Illinois river in Spring Bay and Bay View Gardens were inundated, and suffered damage due to record river levels. The river stage at Peoria climbed to a record level of 29.35 feet on April 23rd at 19:30 local time, which was nearly 12 feet above flood stage. High impact flooding continued into the month of May 2013.
Rainfall rates of 2.00 inches per hour for three to four hours produced up to 8.00 inches of rain and major flash flooding. Hundreds of homes and businesses in Roanoke, Eureka and Metamora were flooded and several water rescues had to be made. Roads near the town of Minonk were flooded with more than one foot of flowing water. Every road from the central to northeast part of the county was impassable. No injuries were reported.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
38,312
Population (ACS)
$198K
Median home value
14
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| 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 |
| May 10, 2013 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Mar 17, 2011 | Snowstorm | SEVERE WINTER STORM AND SNOWSTORM | DR |
| Oct 3, 2008 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Woodford County, Illinois?
437 events are on record between 1954 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths and $75.1M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Woodford County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 203 recorded events — 46.5% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Woodford County?
56 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 48 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Woodford County?
14 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Woodford County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Woodford County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Woodford County as very low risk, placing it in the 40 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Woodford 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
- Winnebago County 692
- Williamson County 375
- Will County 1,250
- Whiteside County 557
- White County 413
- Wayne County 312
Cite this page
“Woodford County, Illinois.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/illinois/woodford-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.