NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Geneva, 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
1 tropical system has passed within 75 miles of Geneva, Illinois since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was an unnamed storm in 1900. Since 1950, 181 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 9 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 1
- Tornadoes
- 181
- EF3 or stronger
- 9
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
42 deaths in all
What the records show for Geneva
None of the 1 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Geneva; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1900, a tropical storm with 58 mph winds when its centre passed 51 miles away. Of the 548 Illinois cities on this site, 57% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Geneva. The strongest of the 181 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F5 on August 28, 1990; its path came within 14 miles, and it killed 29 people. Of the 181, 11 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 100 have come since 2000. July has had the most tornadoes, 38. The most recent tornado was on March 14, 2025. Geneva has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 84% of the 548 Illinois cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 158 times since 1962, with stones up to 2.5 inches (tennis ball size). Geneva has more hail reports within 10 miles than 69% of the 548 Illinois cities.
Compare Geneva's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Geneva
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900 | Unnamed 1900 stormSep 11 | 51 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 Geneva: 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 Geneva
By decade
- 2020s69(1 EF3+)
- 2010s10
- 2000s21
- 1990s11(2 EF3+)
- 1980s11(1 EF3+)
- 1970s27(3 EF3+)
- 1960s21(2 EF3+)
- 1950s11
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 28, 1990 | F5 | 14 mi | 16.4 mi | 29 / 350 |
| Apr 11, 1965 | F4 | 23 mi | 9.1 mi | 6 / 75 |
| Jun 13, 1976 | F4 | 22 mi | 3.3 mi | 2 / 23 |
| Apr 21, 1967 | F4 | 18 mi | 8.8 mi | 1 / 100 |
| Jun 29, 1979 | F4 | 21 mi | 5.4 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Apr 27, 1984 | F3 | 20 mi | 9 mi | 1 / 5 |
| Jun 20, 2021 | EF3 | 12 mi | 17.6 mi | 0 / 11 |
| Mar 27, 1991 | F3 | 24 mi | 15 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Mar 12, 1976 | F3 | 13 mi | 22.6 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Mar 12, 1976 | F2 | 21 mi | 15.1 mi | 2 / 66 |
| Jun 9, 1966 | F2 | 25 mi | 2.5 mi | 1 / 30 |
| Jul 16, 1980 | F2 | 19 mi | 1.4 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 181, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Geneva
The Storm Prediction Center has 158 hail reports within 10 miles of Geneva since 1962, made on 79 separate days. Of these, 108 were 1 inch across or larger, and 13 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 2.5 inches (tennis ball size), was reported on 3 days, most recently June 8, 2025. The most recent report is from June 8, 2025. April has the most reports, 34.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Geneva
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is West Chicago Dupage Airport, IL, 4 miles northeast of Geneva at 754 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 84°F and low of 63°F; January is the coolest, at 31°F and 16°F. May is the wettest at 4.3 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 1.2 inches; the year adds up to 33.2 inches over 66 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 14 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 134 nights a year. That 33.2 inches is more than at 1 of the 146 Illinois stations used on this site (1%). Batavia, 3 miles south, has its own station (Aurora, IL): 39.7 inches a year, 6.5 more than here, and the same July average high, 84°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 31 | 16 | 1.3 | 3 |
| Feb | 35 | 19 | 1.2 | 3 |
| Mar | 47 | 28 | 2.0 | 5 |
| Apr | 60 | 38 | 3.4 | 7 |
| May | 71 | 49 | 4.3 | 9 |
| Jun | 81 | 59 | 3.7 | 7 |
| Jul | 84 | 63 | 3.6 | 6 |
| Aug | 82 | 62 | 3.8 | 6 |
| Sep | 76 | 54 | 3.0 | 5 |
| Oct | 62 | 42 | 3.0 | 6 |
| Nov | 48 | 31 | 2.2 | 4 |
| Dec | 35 | 21 | 1.7 | 4 |
| Year | 59 | 40 | 33.2 | 66 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at West Chicago Dupage Airport, IL (754 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 Geneva
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 399 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Geneva: 336 thunderstorm wind reports, 27 floods, 19 flash floods, 9 lightning strikes and 8 heavy rain events. They killed 2 people and injured 51, and the NWS estimated $37.8 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 90 mph, on July 17, 2003. July has had the most flash floods, 5 of 19. Of the 547 Illinois cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 303 have had fewer than Geneva.
July 24, 2010: flood 8 miles from the centre of Geneva — 1 killed.
May 15, 2020: flood 8 miles from the centre of Geneva — 1 killed.
August 23, 2007: thunderstorm wind 6 miles from the centre of Geneva — 40 injured, $500,000 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
Flood insurance policyholders in Geneva's ZIP code 60134 have filed 12 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1982, and were paid $44,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 58% 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, 17 have fewer than Geneva.
Kane County, which includes Geneva, has been named in 16 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1967, 11 of them major disasters (by incident: 4 floods, 4 snowstorms, 3 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 26, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Kane County a Relatively High rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for tornadoes, inland flooding and lightning; Relatively Moderate for strong wind and heat waves; Relatively Low for hail; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $198.1 million a year, the 5th highest of 102 Illinois counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $99.0 million (50%), 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.