50
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
12
Direct injuries
$27.5M
Property damage
Tornado in Woodford County, Illinois: 50 recorded events between 1954 and 2024. The strongest on record measured F4. That places the county #372 nationally and #19 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Tornado in Woodford County, Illinois: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for tornado in Woodford County is the 2000s, when 14 of the county's 50 recorded events were logged. Comparing decades is useful for spotting active periods, but the earliest years are thin because systematic reporting for this hazard began later.
Within the Woodford County archive, tornado makes up 11.4% of all recorded severe weather across 6 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #372 for this hazard and #19 within Illinois, putting it in the 86.9 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
May is the peak month for tornado in Woodford County with 17 recorded events, while Jan is the quietest. Seasonality here is a property of the archive as much as the climate: reports cluster where population and spotter networks are densest.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
| Date | Scale | Path length | Max width | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013-11-17 | EF4 | 46.4 mi | 880 yd | Crossed in |
| 2004-07-13 | EF4 | 9.6 mi | 440 yd | Touched down here |
| 2017-02-28 | EF3 | 17.8 mi | 600 yd | Touched down here |
| 2010-06-05 | EF2 | 2.3 mi | 250 yd | Touched down here |
| 2010-06-05 | EF2 | 0.8 mi | 250 yd | Crossed in |
| 2003-05-10 | EF2 | 12.5 mi | 300 yd | Crossed in |
| 2003-05-30 | EF2 | 7.3 mi | 150 yd | Touched down here |
| 1986-09-24 | EF2 | 2.5 mi | 73 yd | Touched down here |
| 1976-03-26 | EF2 | 0.5 mi | 10 yd | Touched down here |
| 1975-05-30 | EF2 | 4.3 mi | 100 yd | Crossed in |
Significant events
Deadliest on record
| Date | Location | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 17, 2013 | METAMORA | EF3 | 0 | 4 | $25.0M |
| May 11, 2003 | EUREKA | F2 | 0 | 4 | $0 |
| Jul 13, 2004 | METAMORA | F4 | 0 | 3 | $0 |
| May 18, 2000 | METAMORA | F0 | 0 | 1 | $5K |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 16, 2024 | SPIRES | EF0 | $0 |
| Jul 16, 2024 | GERMANTOWN | EF1 | $0 |
| Jul 16, 2024 | CAZENOVIA | EF0 | $0 |
| Jul 16, 2024 | GERMANTOWN HILLS | EF1 | $0 |
| Mar 31, 2023 | EUREKA COUNTRY AIRE | EFU | $0 |
| Oct 11, 2021 | EL PASO | EFU | $0 |
| Oct 11, 2021 | WASHBURN | EF0 | $0 |
| Oct 11, 2021 | ROANOKE | EFU | $0 |
| May 23, 2020 | PANOLA | EF0 | $20K |
| May 27, 2019 | BENSON | EF0 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from Woodford County
- Thunderstorm Wind 203
- Hail 137
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.
A tornado touched down in an open field about 3.7 miles west of Washburn in extreme northern Woodford County at 5:26 PM CST. The tornado broke windows and did roof damage to a house and destroyed several outbuildings about a mile from its origin. The tornado rapidly widened to more than 1/4 mile across and increased in intensity to EF-3 as it destroyed a house about 2.5 miles west of Washburn. One mile to the east, the tornado tore the roof off a house before moving into Washburn. The tornado damaged 8 houses in town…doing significant damage to roofs, garages, automobiles, and trees before crossing into extreme southern Marshall County at 5:31 PM CST.
A tornado crossed into Woodford County from Tazewell County approximately 3.2 miles south-southwest of Metamora. Several trees were snapped, five power poles were damaged, the metal roof of a barn was lifted off and windows were broken on a house. The tornado lifted 2.6 miles south-southeast of Metamora.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many tornado events are on record in Woodford County, Illinois?
50 tornado events are recorded in Woodford County between 1954 and 2024, causing 0 direct deaths.
What is the strongest tornado recorded in Woodford County?
The strongest tornado on record in Woodford County measured F4.
Where does the tornado data for Woodford County come from?
All events come from the NOAA/NCEI Storm Events Database, the federal public-domain archive of severe weather reports. Dates are UTC, damage is as reported and not inflation-adjusted, and the most recent entries may still be revised.
Cite this page
“Tornado in Woodford County, Illinois.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/illinois/woodford-county/tornado/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.