NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Carthage, 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
No tropical storm or hurricane has passed within 75 miles of Carthage, Illinois since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 99 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 8 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 99
- EF3 or stronger
- 8
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
1 deaths in all
What the records show for Carthage
The strongest of the 99 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on May 13, 1995; its path came within 14 miles. The deadliest, an F3 on January 24, 1967, killed 1 person. Of the 99, one had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 35 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 33. The most recent tornado was on August 10, 2025. Of the 548 Illinois cities on this site, 79% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Carthage. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 55 times since 1955, with stones up to 2 inches (hen egg size). Of the 548 Illinois cities, 78% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Carthage.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Carthage
By decade
- 2020s11
- 2010s10
- 2000s14
- 1990s21(2 EF3+)
- 1980s10
- 1970s17(2 EF3+)
- 1960s10(3 EF3+)
- 1950s6(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 13, 1995 | F4 | 14 mi | 50 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Jan 24, 1967 | F3 | 21 mi | 4.3 mi | 1 / 6 |
| Apr 8, 1999 | F3 | 11 mi | 7.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 13, 1974 | F3 | 12 mi | 11 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 30, 1973 | F3 | 16 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 21, 1964 | F3 | 20 mi | 14.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 14, 1961 | F3 | 24 mi | 127.1 mi | 0 / 8 |
| May 21, 1957 | F3 | 18 mi | 13.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Dec 4, 2017 | EF2 | 20 mi | 7.97 mi | 0 / 1 |
| May 10, 2003 | F2 | 2 mi | 69.2 mi | 0 / 4 |
| May 10, 2003 | F2 | 22 mi | 11.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 5, 1999 | F2 | 22 mi | 9.4 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 99, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Carthage
The Storm Prediction Center has 55 hail reports within 10 miles of Carthage since 1955, made on 40 separate days. Of these, 34 were 1 inch across or larger, and 5 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 2 inches (hen egg size), was reported on 5 days, most recently March 15, 2016. The most recent report is from March 31, 2024. May has the most reports, 14.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Carthage
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Bentley, IL, 5 miles south of Carthage at 650 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 86°F and low of 67°F; January is the coolest, at 34°F and 18°F. May is the wettest at 5.3 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 1.7 inches; the year adds up to 40.4 inches over 67 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 31 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 124 nights a year. Snowfall averages 23.1 inches a year, most of it in January. That 40.4 inches is more than at 83 of the 146 Illinois stations used on this site (57%). Hamilton, 11 miles west, has its own station (Keokuk Lock Dam 19, IA): 39.8 inches a year, 0.6 less than here, and the same July average high, 86°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 34 | 18 | 1.7 | 4 | 7.6 |
| Feb | 39 | 22 | 2.0 | 4 | 6.3 |
| Mar | 51 | 32 | 2.6 | 5 | 2.1 |
| Apr | 63 | 42 | 4.1 | 7 | 0.4 |
| May | 74 | 53 | 5.3 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 83 | 63 | 4.9 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 86 | 67 | 4.3 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 85 | 64 | 4.2 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 79 | 56 | 3.7 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 66 | 44 | 3.2 | 5 | 0.1 |
| Nov | 51 | 33 | 2.5 | 5 | 1.4 |
| Dec | 39 | 24 | 1.9 | 4 | 5.2 |
| Year | 63 | 43 | 40.4 | 67 | 23.1 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Bentley, IL (650 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 Carthage
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 78 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Carthage: 58 thunderstorm wind reports, 14 floods, 5 flash floods and 1 lightning strike. They killed 0 people and injured 2, and the NWS estimated $2.8 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 120 mph, on June 29, 2023. Of the 547 Illinois cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 28 have had fewer than Carthage.
June 29, 2023: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Carthage — 2 injured.
NWS: “Roof ripped off mobile home, 2 injuries per emergency management.”
June 14, 2010: flood 3 miles from the centre of Carthage — $250,000 damage.
NWS: “Heavy rains during the second week of June resulted in the La Moine River at Colmar going above the moderate flood stage level of 22 feet on June 14 around 12 pm. 9 feet around 7 pm June 14.”
June 22, 2010: flood 3 miles from the centre of Carthage — $250,000 damage.
NWS: “Heavy rains during the third week of June resulted in the La Moine River at Colmar going above the moderate flood stage level of 22 feet on June 22 around 12 pm. 8 feet around 7 am June 24.”
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
Hancock County, which includes Carthage, has been named in 19 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1973, 15 of them major disasters (by incident: 8 floods, 4 severe storms, 3 snowstorms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms and Flooding, on August 15, 2023. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Hancock County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for strong wind, lightning and heat waves; Relatively Low for tornadoes and hail; Very Low for hurricanes and inland flooding. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $8.4 million a year, the 85th highest of 102 Illinois counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $2.4 million (28%), 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 Carthage
- Hamilton, IL11 mi
- Keokuk, IA15 mi
- Colchester, IL16 mi
- Fort Madison, IA19 mi
- Mendon, IL23 mi
- Macomb, IL24 mi
- Camp Point, IL27 mi
- Burlington, IA28 mi
- West Point, IA28 mi
- West Burlington, IA29 mi
- Canton, MO29 mi
- Donnellson, IA30 mi
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