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Marshall County, Illinois severe weather history spans 258 recorded events between 1965 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 57.8% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,055 nationally and #75 in Illinois.
258
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
2
Direct injuries
$21.7M
Property damage
The record
What the Marshall County, Illinois severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Marshall County, Illinois severe weather history averages 4.2 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 83 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 26 events fall before 1990 and 232 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is flash flood, with $10.2M 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 Marshall County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 149 | 0 | $2.3M | 91 | 1968–2025 |
| Hail | 60 | 0 | $0 | 2.75 | 1966–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 21 | 0 | $10.2M | 0 | 1996–2021 |
| Tornado | 17 | 0 | $3.3M | F3 | 1965–2026 |
| Flood | 9 | 0 | $5.5M | 0 | 2009–2017 |
| Lightning | 2 | 0 | $390K | 0 | 2009–2011 |
Decade by decade
Marshall County, Illinois severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
22 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 15 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017-02-28 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 17.8 mi | Crossed in |
| 1972-07-17 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 81.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1965-04-24 | EF3 | 0 | 1 | 6.5 mi | Crossed in |
| 2010-06-05 | EF2 | 0 | 17 | 17.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 1967-07-23 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 9.4 mi | Crossed in |
| 2024-07-14 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2024-07-14 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 2024-07-14 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 6.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2024-02-08 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 10.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2004-04-20 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 10.8 mi | Crossed in |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Marshall County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 6, 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | HENRY | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Apr 24, 1965 | 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
Torrential rainfall of 4.00 to 8.00 inches resulted in damage to about 2,000 houses and businesses in the county, including several in the cities of Henry and Lacon. Every creek and stream in the county was flooded. Every road in the county was impassable, and several water rescues were made. Numerous roads and culverts were damaged by the flash flooding.
More than 30 homes and businesses along the Illinois River in Marshall County suffered damage due to record river levels. The river stage at Henry climbed to a record level of 32.87 feet on April 22nd at 16:00 local time, which was nearly 10 feet above flood stage. High impact flooding continued into the month of May 2013.
The tornado crossed from Woodford County into Marshall County at 5:31 PM CST. It tracked northeastward through southern Marshall County…destroying outbuildings and damaging house roofs and trees, as it widened to about 600 yards southwest of La Rose. The tornado weakened in southeast Marshall County as it crossed I-39 west of Rutland, then crossed into LaSalle County in the National Weather Service Chicago County Warning Area (CWA) at 5:49 PM CST.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
11,647
Population (ACS)
$143K
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 |
| May 10, 2013 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Mar 17, 2011 | Snowstorm | SEVERE WINTER STORM AND SNOWSTORM | DR |
| Dec 29, 2006 | Snowstorm | SNOW | EM |
| Sep 7, 2005 | Hurricane | HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION | EM |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Marshall County, Illinois?
258 events are on record between 1965 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths and $21.7M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Marshall County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 149 recorded events — 57.8% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Marshall County?
22 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 15 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Marshall County?
14 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Marshall County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Marshall County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Marshall County as very low risk, placing it in the 27 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Marshall 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
- Marion County 375
- Mason County 268
- Madison County 839
- Massac County 300
- Macoupin County 527
- Menard County 258
Cite this page
“Marshall County, Illinois.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/illinois/marshall-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.