NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Downers Grove, 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 Downers Grove, Illinois since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was an unnamed storm in 1941. Since 1950, 201 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 9 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 2
- Tornadoes
- 201
- EF3 or stronger
- 9
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
72 deaths in all
What the records show for Downers Grove
None of the 2 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Downers Grove; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1900, a tropical storm with 58 mph winds when its centre passed 62 miles away. The record near Downers Grove begins with an unnamed storm in 1900; the most recent system was an unnamed storm in 1941, a tropical storm 73 miles away. Downers Grove has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 43% of the 548 Illinois cities on this site. The strongest of the 201 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F5 on August 28, 1990; its path came within 17 miles, and it killed 29 people. The deadliest, an F4 on April 21, 1967, killed 33 people. Of the 201, 12 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 105 have come since 2000. July has had the most tornadoes, 49. The most recent tornado was on March 19, 2025. Downers Grove has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 96% of the 548 Illinois cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 256 times since 1956, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Downers Grove has more hail reports within 10 miles than 96% of the 548 Illinois cities.
Compare Downers Grove's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Downers Grove
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1941 | Unnamed 1941 stormSep 25 | 73 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1900 | Unnamed 1900 stormSep 11 | 62 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 Downers Grove: 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 Downers Grove
By decade
- 2020s74(1 EF3+)
- 2010s14
- 2000s17
- 1990s11(2 EF3+)
- 1980s16(1 EF3+)
- 1970s28(4 EF3+)
- 1960s25(1 EF3+)
- 1950s16
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 28, 1990 | F5 | 17 mi | 16.4 mi | 29 / 350 |
| Apr 21, 1967 | F4 | 12 mi | 15 mi | 33 / 500 |
| Jun 13, 1976 | F4 | 6 mi | 3.3 mi | 2 / 23 |
| Jun 29, 1979 | F4 | 16 mi | 5.4 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Apr 27, 1984 | F3 | 14 mi | 9 mi | 1 / 5 |
| Jun 20, 2021 | EF3 | 3 mi | 17.6 mi | 0 / 11 |
| Mar 27, 1991 | F3 | 9 mi | 15 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Mar 12, 1976 | F3 | 3 mi | 22.6 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Jul 17, 1972 | F3 | 21 mi | 81.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 12, 1976 | F2 | 11 mi | 15.1 mi | 2 / 66 |
| Nov 12, 1965 | F2 | 18 mi | 35.9 mi | 2 / 90 |
| Apr 6, 1972 | F2 | 15 mi | 6.8 mi | 1 / 22 |
The strongest 12 of 201, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Downers Grove
The Storm Prediction Center has 256 hail reports within 10 miles of Downers Grove since 1956, made on 122 separate days. Of these, 141 were 1 inch across or larger, and 6 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on June 22, 1984. The most recent report is from August 16, 2025. May has the most reports, 44.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Downers Grove
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Wheaton 3 SE, IL, 4 miles northwest of Downers Grove at 680 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 86°F and low of 63°F; January is the coolest, at 33°F and 17°F. June is the wettest at 4.7 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.0 inches; the year adds up to 40.1 inches over 69 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 29 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 128 nights a year. Snowfall averages 24.3 inches a year, most of it in January. That 40.1 inches is more than at 78 of the 146 Illinois stations used on this site (53%). Western Springs, 6 miles east, has its own station (Chicago Midway Airport, IL): 34.7 inches a year, 5.4 less than here, and a July average high of 85°F against 86°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 33 | 17 | 2.1 | 5 | 9.3 |
| Feb | 38 | 20 | 2.0 | 4 | 5.1 |
| Mar | 50 | 29 | 2.5 | 6 | 4.5 |
| Apr | 63 | 38 | 4.1 | 7 | 0.3 |
| May | 74 | 49 | 4.5 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 83 | 59 | 4.7 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 86 | 63 | 3.9 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 84 | 62 | 4.4 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 78 | 54 | 3.3 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 65 | 43 | 3.6 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 50 | 32 | 2.8 | 5 | 0.9 |
| Dec | 38 | 23 | 2.2 | 4 | 4.2 |
| Year | 62 | 41 | 40.1 | 69 | 24.3 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Wheaton 3 SE, IL (680 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 Downers Grove
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 604 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Downers Grove: 439 thunderstorm wind reports, 73 floods, 60 flash floods, 22 lightning strikes and 10 heavy rain events. They killed 3 people and injured 18, and the NWS estimated $272.8 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 96 mph, on August 4, 2008. May has had the most flash floods, 15 of 60. Of the 547 Illinois cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 506 have had fewer than Downers Grove.
July 28, 2016: lightning strike 10 miles from the centre of Downers Grove — 1 killed, 1 injured.
May 30, 2013: lightning strike 2 miles from the centre of Downers Grove — 1 killed.
NWS: “A 17 year old girl was struck by lightning in O'Brien Park. Police found her unconscious and not breathing, she was pronounced dead at the scene a short time later.”
September 3, 2018: lightning strike 6 miles from the centre of Downers Grove — 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
Flood insurance policyholders in Downers Grove's 2 ZIP codes have filed 158 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $1.8 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Mid-spring storms in 2013: 37 claims (23% of all) and $822,000, then Flooding in 1996 with 32. 45% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 320 Illinois cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 252 have fewer than Downers Grove.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Mid-spring storms2013 | 37 | $822,000 |
| Flooding1996 | 32 | $90,000 |
DuPage County, which includes Downers Grove, has been named in 16 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1967, 11 of them major disasters (by incident: 4 floods, 4 severe storms, 4 snowstorms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 26, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives DuPage County a Relatively High rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for tornadoes and strong wind; Relatively High for inland flooding and lightning; Relatively Moderate for heat waves; Relatively Low for hail; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $366.0 million a year, the 2nd highest of 102 Illinois counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $195.3 million (53%), 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.