Live
Active alerts for this county
Extreme Heat Warning
Jefferson; Wayne; Edwards; Wabash; Perry; Franklin; Hamilton; White; Jackson; Williamson; Saline; Gallatin; Union; Johnson; Pope; Hardin; Alexander; Pulaski; Massac; Gibson; Pike; Posey; Vanderburgh; Warrick; Spencer; Fulton; Hickman; Carlisle; Ballard; McCracken; Graves; Livingston; Marshall; Calloway; Crittenden; Lyon; Trigg; Caldwell; Union; Webster; Hopkins; Christian; Henderson; Daviess; McLean; Muhlenberg; Todd; Perry; Bollinger; Cape Girardeau; Wayne; Carter; Ripley; Butler; Stoddard; Scott; Mississippi; New Madrid
Edwards County, Illinois severe weather history spans 149 recorded events between 1955 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 38.9% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,711 nationally and #99 in Illinois.
149
Recorded events
3
Direct deaths
4
Direct injuries
$8.7M
Property damage
The record
What the Edwards County, Illinois severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Edwards County, Illinois severe weather history averages 2.1 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 49 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 17 events fall before 1990 and 132 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Edwards County, Illinois record is thunderstorm wind, responsible for 2 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $5.7M in reported property damage. In total, 8 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Edwards County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 58 | 2 | $2.2M | 87 | 1981–2025 |
| Hail | 37 | 0 | $500K | 2.75 | 1955–2023 |
| Flash Flood | 16 | 0 | $177K | 0 | 1996–2023 |
| Heavy Rain | 12 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2006–2015 |
| Flood | 11 | 0 | $40K | 0 | 1996–2019 |
| Tornado | 10 | 1 | $5.7M | F4 | 1958–2015 |
| Lightning | 4 | 0 | $90K | 0 | 1999–2011 |
| Funnel Cloud | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2021–2021 |
Decade by decade
Edwards County, Illinois severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
12 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 5 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990-06-02 | EF4 | 1 | 12 | 106.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1957-12-18 | EF3 | 0 | 4 | 19.8 mi | Crossed in |
| 2013-11-17 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 7.9 mi | Crossed in |
| 2013-11-17 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 4.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1989-01-07 | EF2 | 0 | 6 | 27.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1961-03-06 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 112.1 mi | Crossed in |
| 1958-07-11 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 32.9 mi | Crossed in |
| 2015-12-23 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 4.3 mi | Crossed in |
| 2012-01-22 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 6.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1989-04-03 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.6 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Edwards County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 18, 1995 | Thunderstorm Wind | Countywide | 2 | 0 | $200K |
| Jun 2, 1990 | Tornado | 1 | 0 | $2.5M | |
| Jul 19, 2012 | Thunderstorm Wind | WEST SALEM | 0 | 2 | $25K |
| Jun 13, 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | ALBION | 0 | 1 | $50K |
| Jul 11, 1958 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $25K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Two fatalities occurred when straight-line winds overturned a tractor-semitrailer into the path of an oncoming automobile. Both drivers were killed instantly. Numerous trees were blown down across the county with widespread power outages.
Widespread major damage occurred across the county. An insurance agent reported over 450 claims to his office alone. The 100-foot tall steeple of an old historic church in West Salem was toppled. The steeple punctured a hole in the roof as it fell. A house in West Salem suffered major damage when a large oak tree fell on it. West Salem firefighters worked through the following day to clear streets of downed trees. Elsewhere in northern Edwards County, a house was partially unroofed. Trees were uprooted, and power lines were down. Numerous grain bins, machine sheds, and outbuildings were damaged or destroyed.
The tornado crossed into Edwards County from Wayne County. Numerous trees were snapped or uprooted. A new addition to a house was destroyed. An attached garage was destroyed, with two vehicles turned 180 degrees. Two 100-year-old barns were totally destroyed. Several 100-year-old trees were snapped or uprooted. Other residences in the area sustained minor damage. The estimated peak winds in this tornado were 130 mph. The maximum intensity was attained just west of Illinois Route 130, almost due north of Albion. A second shorter track EF-2 tornado occurred simultaneously just south of this tornado. Both tornadoes were witnessed on the ground at the same time. This tornado was spawned by the same supercell that produced the EF-2 tornado that tracked from Sims to Fairfield in Wayne County.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
6,075
Population (ACS)
$100K
Median home value
7
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 26, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Sep 7, 2005 | Hurricane | HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION | EM |
| Feb 1, 2005 | Snowstorm | RECORD/NEAR RECORD SNOW | EM |
| May 21, 2002 | Tornado | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES AND FLOODING | DR |
| Jun 22, 1990 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES & FLOODING | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Edwards County, Illinois?
149 events are on record between 1955 and 2025, causing 3 direct deaths and $8.7M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Edwards County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 58 recorded events — 38.9% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Edwards County?
12 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 5 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Edwards County?
7 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Edwards County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Edwards County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Edwards County as very low risk, placing it in the 26 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Edwards 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
- Edgar County 297
- Effingham County 378
- DuPage County 970
- Fayette County 264
- Douglas County 266
- Ford County 258
Cite this page
“Edwards County, Illinois.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/illinois/edwards-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.