NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Berkeley, 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 Berkeley, Illinois since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was an unnamed storm in 1941. Since 1950, 161 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 8 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 2
- Tornadoes
- 161
- EF3 or stronger
- 8
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
44 deaths in all
What the records show for Berkeley
None of the 2 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Berkeley; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1900, a tropical storm with 58 mph winds when its centre passed 56 miles away. The record near Berkeley begins with an unnamed storm in 1900; the most recent system was an unnamed storm in 1941, a tropical storm 72 miles away. Berkeley has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 43% of the 548 Illinois cities on this site. The highest rating among the 161 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4, reached 4 times; the most recent, on June 29, 1979, came within 25 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on April 21, 1967, killed 33 people. Of the 161, 11 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 82 have come since 2000. July has had the most tornadoes, 45. The most recent tornado was on March 14, 2025. Berkeley has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 67% of the 548 Illinois cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 239 times since 1955, with stones up to 2.5 inches (tennis ball size). Berkeley has more hail reports within 10 miles than 93% of the 548 Illinois cities.
Compare Berkeley's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Berkeley
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1941 | Unnamed 1941 stormSep 25 | 72 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1900 | Unnamed 1900 stormSep 11 | 56 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Berkeley: 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 Berkeley
By decade
- 2020s61(1 EF3+)
- 2010s9
- 2000s12
- 1990s8(1 EF3+)
- 1980s10(1 EF3+)
- 1970s27(3 EF3+)
- 1960s21(2 EF3+)
- 1950s13
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 21, 1967 | F4 | 16 mi | 15 mi | 33 / 500 |
| Jun 13, 1976 | F4 | 11 mi | 3.3 mi | 2 / 23 |
| Apr 21, 1967 | F4 | 25 mi | 8.8 mi | 1 / 100 |
| Jun 29, 1979 | F4 | 25 mi | 5.4 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Apr 27, 1984 | F3 | 23 mi | 9 mi | 1 / 5 |
| Jun 20, 2021 | EF3 | 10 mi | 17.6 mi | 0 / 11 |
| Mar 27, 1991 | F3 | 13 mi | 15 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Mar 12, 1976 | F3 | 5 mi | 22.6 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Mar 12, 1976 | F2 | 2 mi | 15.1 mi | 2 / 66 |
| Nov 12, 1965 | F2 | 23 mi | 35.9 mi | 2 / 90 |
| Apr 6, 1972 | F2 | 23 mi | 6.8 mi | 1 / 22 |
| Jun 9, 1966 | F2 | 15 mi | 2.5 mi | 1 / 30 |
The strongest 12 of 161, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Berkeley
The Storm Prediction Center has 239 hail reports within 10 miles of Berkeley since 1955, made on 132 separate days. Of these, 154 were 1 inch across or larger, and 7 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.5 inches (tennis ball size), fell on March 3, 1955. The most recent report is from August 16, 2025. June has the most reports, 48.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Berkeley
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Chicago Ohare International Airport, IL, 8 miles north of Berkeley at 658 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 85°F and low of 66°F; January is the coolest, at 32°F and 19°F. May is the wettest at 4.5 inches of precipitation on average and January and February the driest at 2.0 inches; the year adds up to 38.0 inches over 72 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 17 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 121 nights a year. Snowfall averages 38.4 inches a year, most of it in January. That 38.0 inches is more than at 34 of the 146 Illinois stations used on this site (23%). Westchester, 3 miles southeast, has its own station (Chicago Midway Airport, IL): 34.7 inches a year, 3.3 less than here, and the same July average high, 85°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 32 | 19 | 2.0 | 5 | 11.3 |
| Feb | 36 | 22 | 2.0 | 5 | 10.7 |
| Mar | 47 | 31 | 2.5 | 6 | 5.5 |
| Apr | 59 | 40 | 3.8 | 7 | 1.3 |
| May | 71 | 51 | 4.5 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 80 | 61 | 4.1 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 85 | 66 | 3.7 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 83 | 65 | 4.3 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 76 | 57 | 3.2 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 63 | 45 | 3.4 | 6 | 0.2 |
| Nov | 48 | 34 | 2.4 | 5 | 1.8 |
| Dec | 37 | 24 | 2.1 | 5 | 7.6 |
| Year | 60 | 43 | 38.0 | 72 | 38.4 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Chicago Ohare International Airport, IL (658 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 Berkeley
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 698 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Berkeley: 516 thunderstorm wind reports, 77 flash floods, 70 floods, 19 lightning strikes and 16 heavy rain events. They killed 4 people and injured 41, and the NWS estimated $141.6 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 96 mph, on June 13, 2022. June has had the most flash floods, 23 of 77. Of the 547 Illinois cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 528 have had fewer than Berkeley.
August 2, 2015: thunderstorm wind 7 miles from the centre of Berkeley — 2 killed, 19 injured.
June 18, 2010: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Berkeley — 1 killed, 2 injured.
August 23, 2007: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Berkeley — 1 killed.
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
Cook County, which includes Berkeley, has been named in 24 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1967, 19 of them major disasters (by incident: 8 floods, 8 severe storms, 4 snowstorms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, and Floodng, on September 20, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Cook County a Very High rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for tornadoes, inland flooding, strong wind, lightning and heat waves; Relatively High for hail; Relatively Low for coastal flooding; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $2.42 billion a year, the highest of 102 Illinois counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $1.10 billion (45%), 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 Berkeley
- Hillside, IL1 mi
- Elmhurst, IL2 mi
- Bellwood, IL2 mi
- Stone Park, IL2 mi
- Northlake, IL2 mi
- Melrose Park, IL3 mi
- Westchester, IL3 mi
- Maywood, IL3 mi
- Broadview, IL3 mi
- Oakbrook Terrace, IL4 mi
- Franklin Park, IL4 mi
- Oak Brook, IL4 mi
All Illinois cities →All hurricanes since 1851 →Compare Berkeley with another place →