NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Creal Springs, 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
3 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Creal Springs, Illinois since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Olga in 2019. Since 1950, 92 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 11 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 3
- Tornadoes
- 92
- EF3 or stronger
- 11
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
35 deaths in all
What the records show for Creal Springs
None of the 3 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Creal Springs; the strongest was Olga in 2019, a tropical storm with 41 mph winds when its centre crossed the city. The record near Creal Springs begins with an unnamed storm in 1915; the most recent system was Olga in 2019. Creal Springs has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 62% of the 548 Illinois cities on this site. The highest rating among the 92 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4 or EF4, reached 5 times; the most recent, on May 16, 2025, came within 3 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on December 18, 1957, killed 11 people. Of the 92, 12 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 57 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 26. The most recent tornado was on May 20, 2025. Of the 548 Illinois cities, 86% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Creal Springs. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 88 times since 1965, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Of the 548 Illinois cities, 55% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Creal Springs.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Creal Springs
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | OlgaOct 26 | overhead | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1941 | Unnamed 1941 stormSep 25 | 40 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 20 | 13 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Creal Springs: 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 Creal Springs
By decade
- 2020s16(2 EF3+)
- 2010s24(1 EF3+)
- 2000s17(3 EF3+)
- 1990s8(1 EF3+)
- 1980s5(1 EF3+)
- 1970s12(1 EF3+)
- 1960s3
- 1950s7(2 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 18, 1957 | F4 | 21 mi | 28.3 mi | 11 / 200 |
| May 29, 1982 | F4 | 7 mi | 17 mi | 10 / 181 |
| Feb 29, 2012 | EF4 | 12 mi | 26.09 mi | 8 / 108 |
| May 6, 2003 | F4 | 20 mi | 33 mi | 2 / 33 |
| May 16, 2025 | EF4 | 3 mi | 16.28 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Apr 21, 1972 | F3 | 18 mi | 0.3 mi | 3 / 0 |
| Apr 28, 2002 | F3 | 19 mi | 19.3 mi | 1 / 10 |
| May 26, 2024 | EF3 | 5 mi | 4.87 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Apr 28, 2002 | F3 | 19 mi | 22 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Nov 19, 1991 | F3 | 9 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 16 |
| May 21, 1957 | F3 | 19 mi | 8.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 2, 2025 | EF2 | 7 mi | 6.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 92, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Creal Springs
The Storm Prediction Center has 88 hail reports within 10 miles of Creal Springs since 1965, made on 68 separate days. Of these, 44 were 1 inch across or larger, and 8 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 3 inches (tea cup size), was reported on 2 days, most recently July 5, 1975. The most recent report is from May 16, 2025. May has the most reports, 26.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Creal Springs
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Dixon Springs Agric Ctr, IL, 15 miles southeast of Creal Springs at 527 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 88°F and low of 67°F; January is the coolest, at 43°F and 26°F. May is the wettest at 5.2 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 3.6 inches; the year adds up to 50.6 inches over 73 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 47 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 80 nights a year. Snowfall averages 7.2 inches a year, most of it in February. That 50.6 inches is more than at 144 of the 146 Illinois stations used on this site (99%). Goreville, 8 miles southwest, has its own station (Anna 2 NNE, IL): 51.1 inches a year, 0.5 more than here, and a July average high of 90°F against 88°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 43 | 26 | 3.8 | 6 | 1.7 |
| Feb | 49 | 29 | 3.6 | 5 | 3.2 |
| Mar | 59 | 37 | 4.7 | 7 | 0.6 |
| Apr | 70 | 46 | 5.0 | 8 | 0.0 |
| May | 77 | 56 | 5.2 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 85 | 63 | 4.1 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 88 | 67 | 4.4 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 87 | 65 | 3.7 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 82 | 58 | 3.8 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 71 | 46 | 3.8 | 5 | 0.3 |
| Nov | 57 | 37 | 4.3 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Dec | 46 | 29 | 4.2 | 6 | 1.4 |
| Year | 68 | 46 | 50.6 | 73 | 7.2 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Dixon Springs Agric Ctr, IL (527 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 Creal Springs
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 87 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Creal Springs: 64 thunderstorm wind reports, 11 flash floods, 7 heavy rain events, 4 floods and 1 lightning strike. They killed 0 people and injured 6, and the NWS estimated $7.5 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 100 mph, on January 3, 2000. Of the 547 Illinois cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 151 have had fewer than Creal Springs.
July 1, 2012: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Creal Springs — 4 injured, $10,000 damage.
March 18, 2008: flood 8 miles from the centre of Creal Springs — 2 injured, $1.6 million damage.
May 8, 2009: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Creal Springs — $4.5 million damage.
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
Williamson County, which includes Creal Springs, has been named in 9 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1982, 6 of them major disasters (by incident: 3 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 tornadoes, 1 hurricane). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 26, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Williamson County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for strong wind; Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, hail, lightning and heat waves; Relatively Low for inland flooding; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $52.5 million a year, the 18th highest of 102 Illinois counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $11.7 million (22%), 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 Creal Springs
- Goreville, IL8 mi
- Marion, IL9 mi
- Carrier Mills, IL12 mi
- Vienna, IL13 mi
- Johnston City, IL15 mi
- Herrin, IL17 mi
- Carterville, IL17 mi
- Harrisburg, IL18 mi
- Makanda, IL18 mi
- Galatia, IL19 mi
- West Frankfort, IL20 mi
- Thompsonville, IL21 mi
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