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Douglas County, Illinois severe weather history spans 266 recorded events between 1957 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 48.1% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,997 nationally and #72 in Illinois.
266
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
47
Direct injuries
$112.5M
Property damage
The record
What the Douglas County, Illinois severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Douglas County, Illinois severe weather history averages 3.9 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 80 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 17 events fall before 1990 and 249 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is hail, with $100.0M 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 Douglas County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 128 | 0 | $1.6M | 70 | 1976–2026 |
| Hail | 72 | 0 | $100.0M | 4.5 | 1974–2025 |
| Tornado | 31 | 0 | $8.1M | F3 | 1957–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 26 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1996–2024 |
| Flood | 8 | 0 | $2.7M | 0 | 2008–2020 |
| Lightning | 1 | 0 | $50K | 0 | 2009–2009 |
Decade by decade
Douglas County, Illinois severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
28 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 21 touched down inside it and 7 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 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 18.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 1963-04-22 | EF3 | 0 | 40 | 38.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 1998-04-07 | EF2 | 0 | 8 | 11.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1990-06-20 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 8.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1980-06-01 | EF2 | 0 | 7 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1974-06-06 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 3.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1961-03-06 | EF2 | 0 | 2 | 30.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 1960-05-06 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 20.9 mi | Crossed in |
| 2013-11-17 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 4.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2013-11-17 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 10.5 mi | Crossed in |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Douglas County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 23, 1963 | Tornado | 0 | 20 | $25K | |
| Jun 1, 1980 | Tornado | 0 | 7 | $2.5M | |
| Aug 18, 2001 | Thunderstorm Wind | TUSCOLA | 0 | 6 | $0 |
| Apr 8, 1998 | Tornado | ARTHUR | 0 | 4 | $0 |
| Apr 9, 1999 | Thunderstorm Wind | ARCOLA | 0 | 3 | $0 |
| May 21, 2014 | Hail | TUSCOLA | 0 | 2 | $100.0M |
| Mar 6, 1961 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $250K | |
| Apr 20, 2002 | Flash Flood | VILLA GROVE | 0 | 1 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Hail caused significant damage to the roofs, windows, and siding of numerous houses in Tuscola. Hundreds of vehicles sustained major window and body damage. Two men were injured when they were struck in the head by large hailstones.
An extended period of heavy rain during the late evening of December 26th in Douglas County combined with an already saturated ground to produce flash flooding. Rainfall amounts ranged from 4.00 to 4.25 inches in less than six hours. Most rural roads and state highways were flooded and impassable. Tuscola, Arcola, Villa Grove and Newman were the most impacted with severely flooded streets and basements. The flooding continued through all of December 27th. Additional rainfall of 1.50 to 2.75 from December 28th into the 29th aggravated the flooding situation significantly. More than 120 buildings and homes were damaged in various locations across the county, 23 of which sustained major flood damage. Every rural road and most state highways and city streets were flooded for nearly four days. The flood water finally subsided by the afternoon of December 31st.
A tornado touched down 3.7 miles NW of Tuscola at 12:44 PM CST, then tracked northeastward and crossed into Champaign County about 1.5 miles NW of Villa Grove at 12:52 PM CST. The roof of a house and 2 outbuildings were damaged during the first 2 miles of the track. The tornado strengthened after it crossed U.S. Highway 45 doing major damage to 2 homes, several large farm buildings, numerous power poles, and a garage. The tornado then turned to the east, damaging the roofs of two homes and destroying several outbuildings. It then crossed I-57 near mile marker 218 where it destroyed a mobile home just east of the highway. The tornado did major damage to several more roofs and outbuildings before it merged with another tornado 2 miles WNW of Villa Grove, turned to the northeast, and crossed into Champaign County.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
19,751
Population (ACS)
$150K
Median home value
13
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 |
| 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 |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Douglas County, Illinois?
266 events are on record between 1957 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths and $112.5M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Douglas County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 128 recorded events — 48.1% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Douglas County?
28 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 21 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Douglas County?
13 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Douglas County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Douglas County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Douglas County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 62 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Douglas 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
- De Witt County 259
- DuPage County 970
- DeKalb County 485
- Edgar County 297
- Cumberland County 180
- Edwards County 149
Cite this page
“Douglas County, Illinois.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/illinois/douglas-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.