NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Atlanta, IL
Every tropical system within 75 miles since 1851 and every tornado within 25 miles since 1950.
Data: NOAA NHC HURDAT2 and NOAA SPC tornado and hail reports, through 2025 · Updated
2 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Atlanta, Illinois since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Ike in 2008. Since 1950, 175 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 8 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 2
- Tornadoes
- 175
- EF3 or stronger
- 8
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
5 deaths in all
What the records show for Atlanta
None of the 2 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Atlanta; the strongest was Ike in 2008, a tropical storm with 54 mph winds when its centre passed 71 miles away. The record near Atlanta begins with an unnamed storm in 1902; the most recent system was Ike in 2008. Atlanta has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 43% of the 548 Illinois cities on this site. The strongest of the 175 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on May 5, 1977; its path passed within a mile of the city centre. The deadliest, an F1 on May 15, 1968, killed 4 people. Of the 175, 12 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 90 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 43. The most recent tornado was on September 20, 2025. Atlanta has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 79% of the 548 Illinois cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 58 times since 1968, with stones up to 2.25 inches. Of the 548 Illinois cities, 74% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Atlanta.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Atlanta
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | IkeSep 14 | 71 mi | Tropical storm (54 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 29 | 62 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Atlanta: a hurricane's worst winds sit within a few dozen miles of its centre, and inland cities are usually past that.
Tornadoes within 25 miles of Atlanta
By decade
- 2020s23
- 2010s15
- 2000s52(1 EF3+)
- 1990s30(3 EF3+)
- 1980s23
- 1970s14(1 EF3+)
- 1960s8(1 EF3+)
- 1950s10(2 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 5, 1977 | F4 | in town | 7.3 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Jun 27, 1951 | F3 | in town | 18.2 mi | 1 / 15 |
| Aug 19, 2009 | EF3 | 9 mi | 24.27 mi | 0 / 19 |
| Apr 19, 1996 | F3 | 6 mi | 9.4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 13, 1995 | F3 | 22 mi | 25 mi | 0 / 25 |
| May 9, 1995 | F3 | 6 mi | 50 mi | 0 / 6 |
| May 15, 1968 | F3 | 16 mi | 12.6 mi | 0 / 25 |
| Jun 27, 1951 | F3 | 22 mi | 9.6 mi | 0 / 35 |
| Mar 31, 2023 | EF2 | 21 mi | 21.01 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 7, 2017 | EF2 | 17 mi | 2.8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 16, 2015 | EF2 | 16 mi | 2.39 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Mar 12, 2006 | F2 | 20 mi | 3.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 175, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Atlanta
The Storm Prediction Center has 58 hail reports within 10 miles of Atlanta since 1968, made on 52 separate days. Of these, 31 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.25 inches, fell on May 9, 1995. The most recent report is from September 20, 2025. April has the most reports, 13.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Atlanta
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Lincoln, IL, 9 miles southwest of Atlanta at 583 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 86°F and low of 64°F; January is the coolest, at 35°F and 18°F. July is the wettest at 4.9 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 1.9 inches; the year adds up to 39.9 inches over 72 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 24 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 126 nights a year. Snowfall averages 19.3 inches a year, most of it in February. That 39.9 inches is more than at 76 of the 146 Illinois stations used on this site (52%). Heyworth, 15 miles east, has its own station (Bloomington 5W, IL): 40.6 inches a year, 0.7 more than here, and a July average high of 84°F against 86°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 35 | 18 | 2.2 | 5 | 5.7 |
| Feb | 40 | 22 | 1.9 | 5 | 6.2 |
| Mar | 52 | 31 | 2.7 | 6 | 1.8 |
| Apr | 64 | 41 | 4.2 | 7 | 0.0 |
| May | 75 | 52 | 4.4 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 83 | 61 | 4.2 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 86 | 64 | 4.9 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 84 | 61 | 3.5 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 79 | 53 | 3.3 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 66 | 42 | 3.4 | 6 | 0.1 |
| Nov | 51 | 32 | 2.9 | 6 | 0.6 |
| Dec | 39 | 23 | 2.3 | 6 | 4.9 |
| Year | 63 | 42 | 39.9 | 72 | 19.3 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Lincoln, IL (583 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals. Normals describe the station; the farther a place is from it, and the bigger the difference in height, the more its weather can differ.
Floods, thunderstorm wind and lightning near Atlanta
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 168 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Atlanta: 155 thunderstorm wind reports, 6 flash floods, 4 floods and 3 lightning strikes. They killed 0 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $6.9 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 96 mph, on July 15, 2024. June has had the most flash floods, 3 of 6. Of the 547 Illinois cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 51 have had fewer than Atlanta.
June 28, 1998: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Atlanta — 1 injured, $1.0 million damage.
June 29, 1998: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Atlanta — $3.0 million damage.
July 8, 2015: flash flood 8 miles from the centre of Atlanta — $500,000 damage.
NWS: “00 inches in two hours during the late evening produced flash flooding in McLean County. The soil was extremely saturated due to excessive rainfall in the latter half of June.”
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, events whose starting point is on record, 1996 to June 30, 2026. Damage is the NWS estimate in the dollars of the year, not insured losses, and NWS notes that some reports are unverified.
Flood insurance claims, disaster declarations and FEMA risk ratings
Logan County, which includes Atlanta, has been named in 12 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1968, 9 of them major disasters (by incident: 2 biological emergencies, 2 floods, 2 severe storms, 2 snowstorms). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms and Flooding, on August 15, 2023. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Logan County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for strong wind; Relatively Moderate for tornadoes; Relatively Low for hail, inland flooding, lightning and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $20.3 million a year, the 51st highest of 102 Illinois counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $7.4 million (37%), is from inland flooding.
Claims: FEMA, OpenFEMA Dataset FIMA NFIP Redacted Claims – v3, summed over ZIP codes; payments in the dollars of each year, not adjusted for inflation. Declarations: Disaster Declarations Summaries – v2, by county. Retrieved October 25, 2026. This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).
Risk ratings: FEMA, National Risk Index county table, December 2025 (v1.20), retrieved October 26, 2026; ratings compare counties nationwide, are meant for planning and are no substitute for a local risk assessment. This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's National Risk Index dataset API or downloadable datasets but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).
What counts as a pass, the distances and the sources: how this storm history is built.
Cities near Atlanta
- Lincoln, IL10 mi
- Heyworth, IL15 mi
- Clinton, IL17 mi
- Delavan, IL17 mi
- Mount Pulaski, IL18 mi
- Danvers, IL19 mi
- Mackinaw, IL20 mi
- Bloomington, IL20 mi
- Tremont, IL21 mi
- Maroa, IL22 mi
- Normal, IL23 mi
- Downs, IL23 mi
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