Southern Illinois tornado history

Listed below are confirmed killer tornadoes listed by date. Modern record keeping in the region began in the 1880s, although there were undoubtedly many other deaths that have been lost to history. It is important to note that before the 1950s tornadoes were not officially ranked. The current rakings are an estimation due to the accounts of witnesses.

Southern Illinois tornadoes by death toll

Confirmed tornadoes by Fujita rating
F0 F1 F2 F3 F4 F5 Total
0 0 3 4 8 2 17
March 19, 1883
F#
Location
County
Time (local)
Path length
Damage
F4 Alton to Bunker Hill Monroe Unknown Unknown 33 deaths
November 6, 1885
F#
Location
County
Time (local)
Path length
Damage
F3 SE of Sacramento to N of Carmi White 1645 16 miles (26 km) 1 death
April 22, 1887
F#
Location
County
Time (local)
Path length
Damage
F4 Mt. Carmel to near the White River, IN Wabash Illinois - Gibson, Pike 1800 30 miles (48 km) 5 deaths
June 3, 1887
F#
Location
County
Time (local)
Path length
Damage
F1 Old Shawneetown Gallitan Unknown Unknown 3 deaths
February 19, 1888
F#
Location
County
Time (local)
Path length
Damage
F4 Mt. Vernon Jefferson 1630 20 miles (32 km) 24 deaths The southern half of Mt. Vernon was destroyed. 300 homes and 50 businesses were destroyed or damaged
March 27, 1890
F#
Location
County
Time (local)
Path length
Damage
F4 NW of Shawneetown to N of Carbondale Cape Girardeau, Perry Missouri - Jackson Illinois 1620 30 miles (48 km) 7 deaths
F4 NW of Thebes to Stonefort Scott Missouri - Alexander, Union, Johnson, Williamson Illinois 1645 55 miles (89 km) 2 deaths
F3 W of Sparta to ENE of Nashville Randolph, Washington 1715 40 miles (64 km) 2 deaths
F4 Metropolis to West Louisville Massac Illinois - McCracken, Pope, Livingston, Crittenden, Webster, McClean, Daviess Kentucky 1715 95 miles (153 km) 21 deaths Likely a family of tornadoes
F2 W of Carmi to Crossville White 1800 5 miles (8.0 km) 1 deaths
May 27, 1896
F#
Location
County
Time (local)
Path length
Damage
F4 St. Louis, Missouri to East St. Louis, Illinois St. Louis City, Missouri - St.Clair, Illinois Unknown Unknown 118 deaths in Southern Illinois

282+ deaths overall - See section on this tornado

March 18, 1925
F#
Location
County
Time (local)
Path length
Damage
F5 NNW of Ellington, Missouri to 10 mi (16 km) NE of Princeton, Indiana Reynolds, Iron, Madison, Bollinger, Cape Girardeau, Perry, Missouri - Jackson, Williamson, Franklin, Hamilton, White, Illinois - Posey, Gibson, Pike, Indiana 1301 234 miles (377 km) 613 deaths in Southern Illinois

695 deaths overall Deadliest single tornado in US history. Most extreme tornado in recorded history. Holds the record longest path length (219 miles, 352 km), longest duration (about 3.5 hours), and fastest forward speed for a significant tornado (73 mph, 117 km/h). Unlike other earlier tornadoes on this list, this tornado is now believed to be one single tornado, not a tornado family See section on this tornado

December 18, 1957
F#
Location
County
Time (local)
Path length
Damage
F5 N of Du Quoin to W of Sesser Perry 1635 5 miles 1 death. 6 injuries. Caused $50,000-$500,000 in damages. Touched down in a mostly rural area.
F4 Murphysboro to rural Franklin County Jackson, Williamson, Franklin 1645 Unknown 11 deaths
F4 Mt. Vernon area Jefferson 1555 Unknown 1 death
March 30, 1982
F#
Location
County
Time (local)
Path length
Damage
F2 Ina area Jefferson 2030 0.8 miles 1 death
May 29, 1982
F#
Location
County
Time (local)
Path length
Damage
F4 WNW of Carterville to E of Marion Williamson 1405 17 miles 10 deaths 52 businesses and 300 homes were destroyed, 324 homes were damaged, and over 200 cars destroyed. Over 200 were injured and 1,000 left homeless. See section on this tornado
December 2, 1982
F#
Location
County
Time (local)
Path length
Damage
F3 New Baden area Clinton 2110 11 miles 1 death
April 5, 1985
F#
Location
County
Time (local)
Path length
Damage
F2 SW of Clarmin area Randolph 458 1.8 miles 1 death
June 2, 1990
F#
Location
County
Time (local)
Path length
Damage
F4 N of Aden to Mt. Carmel Hamilton, Wayne, Edwards, Wabash 1720 43 miles 1 death
April 21, 2002
F#
Location
County
Time (local)
Path length
Damage
F3 1.5 mi NE of Bluford to Ellery Clinton, Wayne 1449 31.5 miles 1 death
F3 W of Wayne City to Ellery Wayne 1451 30 miles
(52.8 km)		 1 death Vehicles were picked up and deposited in houses. Well-constructed houses lost roofs and some walls. Weaker structures, including a tavern near Sims, were demolished.
F3 9 W Dongola to 7 E Dongola Union 0018 16 miles 1 death A train was blown off the tracks. Several wood houses were demolished, and seven double-wide trailers were destroyed. Approximately 75 homes were damaged. A recreational vehicle was tossed across Lake Dongola and impaled into the ground.
May 6, 2003
F#
Location
County
Time (local)
Path length
Damage
F4 N of New Grand Chain to N of Golconda Pulaski, Massac, Pope 2032 33 miles
(52.8 km)		 2 deaths Several homes were destroyed while several others sustained minor to severe damage while other structures including frame homes (including being swept away from its foundation), mobile homes, two businesses, outbuildings and a campground were destroyed. A Conservation Area sustained severe damage to its facilities. Thirteen people were also injured. See section on this tornado
April 2, 2006
F#
Location
County
Time (local)
Path length
Damage
F2 SW of Fairview Heights to 4 mi NE of Fairview Heights St. Clair 1615 7 miles 1 death

See also

External links

Books
10 deadliest American tornadoes
Rank Name (location) Date Deaths
1 "Tri-State" (Missouri, Illinois and Indiana) March 18, 1925 695
2 Natchez, Mississippi May 7, 1840 317
3 St. Louis, Missouri and East St. Louis, Illinois May 27, 1896 255
4 Tupelo, Mississippi April 5, 1936 216
5 Gainesville, Georgia April 6, 1936 203
6 Woodward, Oklahoma April 9, 1947 181
7 Joplin, Missouri May 22, 2011 158
8 Amite, Louisiana and Purvis, Mississippi April 24, 1908 143
9 New Richmond, Wisconsin June 12, 1899 117
10 Flint, Michigan
 June 8, 1953
116
Source: Storm Prediction Center
10 costliest US tornadoes
Rank Area affected Date Damage 1 Adjusted Damage 2
1 Joplin, Missouri May 22, 2011 2800 2945
2 Tuscaloosa, Alabama April 27, 2011 2450 2577
3 Moore, Oklahoma May 20, 2013 2000 2032
4 Oklahoma City Metro, Oklahoma May 3, 1999 1000 1420
5 Hackleburg, Alabama April 27, 2011 1290 1357
6 Wichita Falls, Texas April 10, 1979 400 1303
7 Omaha, Nebraska May 6, 1975 250 1098
8 Washington, Illinois November 17, 2013 935 950
9 Lubbock, Texas May 11, 1970 250 823
10 Topeka, Kansas June 8, 1966 250 728
Source: Brooks, Harold E.; C. A. Doswell (Feb 2001). "Normalized Damage from Major Tornadoes in the United States: 1890–1999". Weather and Forecasting (American Meteorological Society) 16 (1): 168–76. doi:10.1175/1520-0434(2001)016<0168:NDFMTI>2.0.CO;2.  3

1. These are the unadjusted damage totals in millions of US dollars.
2. Raw damage totals adjusted for inflation, in millions of 2016 USD.
3. A search of NCDC Storm Data indicates no tornadoes between 1999 and 2010 have caused more than $400 million in damage.

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