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Pope County, Illinois severe weather history spans 173 recorded events between 1958 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 32.4% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,593 nationally and #96 in Illinois.
173
Recorded events
3
Direct deaths
6
Direct injuries
$7.0M
Property damage
The record
What the Pope County, Illinois severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Pope County, Illinois severe weather history averages 2.6 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 60 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 10 events fall before 1990 and 163 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Pope County, Illinois record is tornado, responsible for 3 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $4.9M 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 Pope County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 56 | 0 | $717K | 87 | 1958–2024 |
| Flood | 40 | 0 | $1.3M | 0 | 1999–2025 |
| Hail | 34 | 0 | $3K | 2 | 1958–2023 |
| Flash Flood | 18 | 0 | $63K | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Tornado | 14 | 3 | $4.9M | F3 | 1972–2019 |
| Heavy Rain | 7 | 0 | $40K | 0 | 2003–2015 |
| Funnel Cloud | 4 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1997–2015 |
Decade by decade
Pope County, Illinois severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
15 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 9 touched down inside it and 6 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003-05-06 | EF4 | 2 | 33 | 33.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 2013-11-17 | EF3 | 3 | 34 | 42.5 mi | Crossed in |
| 1972-04-21 | EF3 | 3 | 0 | 0.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2002-04-28 | EF3 | 0 | 1 | 22.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 2025-04-02 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 12.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 2004-10-18 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 14.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1999-01-22 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1990-10-03 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2019-06-23 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 2006-09-22 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 9.3 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Pope County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 21, 1972 | Tornado | 3 | 0 | $25K | |
| Mar 1, 1997 | Flash Flood | EDDYVILLE | 0 | 2 | $50K |
| Apr 22, 1972 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $250K | |
| Jul 7, 2016 | Flash Flood | BRISTOL | 0 | 1 | $1K |
| Apr 28, 2002 | Tornado | DIXON SPGS | 0 | 1 | $400K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A tornado with top winds estimated near 125 MPH struck a development of cabins and small summer homes in the Shawnee National Forest, at a place called Ropers Landing. The tornado damaged or destroyed about 30 of these structures and caused extensive tree damage. About six cabins were completely demolished. The homes were unhabited in the middle of winter. Ropers Landing is located at the base of a bluff along the Ohio River. The tornado lifted as it crossed the Ohio River.
Illinois 145 was closed two miles north of Route 146. Route 145 is the main north-south route through the county. More than 1,000 sandbags were filled in Pope County for residents in flood-prone areas. Many of the sandbags were placed around a water pumping station that services parts of the county with drinking water.
The tornado crossed into Pope County from Massac County. The most intense damage in Pope County was rated EF-2 with estimated 130 mph peak winds. At least two mobile homes were completely destroyed. The mobile home units separated from their frame undercarriage and were rolled several times. The tornado continued east across the Ohio River into Livingston County, Kentucky. The total path length of this tornado was 42 miles. The parent supercell tracked from southeast Missouri across the Mississippi River through the Paducah area, then east to the Kentucky Lake area of western Kentucky.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
3,739
Population (ACS)
$144K
Median home value
12
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 |
| Jun 7, 2011 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
| Mar 2, 2009 | Severe Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | DR |
| Sep 7, 2005 | Hurricane | HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION | EM |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Golconda 126
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Pope County, Illinois?
173 events are on record between 1958 and 2025, causing 3 direct deaths and $7.0M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Pope County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 56 recorded events — 32.4% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Pope County?
15 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 9 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Pope County?
12 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Pope County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Pope County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Pope County as very low risk, placing it in the 15 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Pope 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
- Pike County 321
- Pulaski County 242
- Piatt County 236
- Putnam County 187
- Perry County 312
- Randolph County 426
Cite this page
“Pope County, Illinois.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/illinois/pope-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.