NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database

Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Genoa, 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 October 26, 2026

1 tropical system has passed within 75 miles of Genoa, Illinois since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was an unnamed storm in 1900. Since 1950, 120 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 5 of them rated EF3 or stronger.

Hurricanes: 0
Tropical storms: 1
Tornadoes: 120
EF3 or stronger: 5

What the records show for Genoa

None of the 1 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Genoa; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1900, a tropical storm with 56 mph winds when its centre passed 30 miles away. Of the 548 Illinois cities on this site, 57% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Genoa. The highest rating among the 120 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4 or EF4, reached 4 times; the most recent, on April 9, 2015, came within 11 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on April 21, 1967, killed 24 people. Of the 120, one had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 77 have come since 2000. August has had the most tornadoes, 25. The most recent tornado was on June 3, 2025. Of the 548 Illinois cities, 59% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Genoa. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 30 times since 1972, with stones up to 1.75 inches (golf ball size). Of the 548 Illinois cities, 95% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Genoa.

Compare Genoa's storm record with another city →

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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Genoa

Tropical systems that passed within 75 miles of Genoa, Illinois, newest first
Year	Storm	Closest	Strength when closest	Peak
1900	Unnamed 1900 stormSep 11	30 mi	Tropical storm (56 mph)	Category 4

Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Genoa: 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 Genoa

By decade

2020s44
2010s16(1 EF3+)
2000s17(1 EF3+)
1990s9
1980s7
1970s9
1960s10(3 EF3+)
1950s8

Strongest tornadoes near Genoa, Illinois
Date	Rating	Distance	Path	Killed / injured
Apr 21, 1967	F4	12 mi	25.5 mi	24 / 450
Apr 11, 1965	F4	18 mi	9.1 mi	6 / 75
Apr 9, 2015	EF4	11 mi	30.14 mi	2 / 11
Apr 21, 1967	F4	22 mi	8.8 mi	1 / 100
Jan 7, 2008	EF3	21 mi	13.1 mi	0 / 5
Oct 8, 1958	F2	21 mi	81 mi	1 / 0
Nov 22, 2010	EF2	21 mi	18.1 mi	0 / 6
Jul 16, 1980	F2	8 mi	1.4 mi	0 / 0
Aug 15, 1978	F2	17 mi	2 mi	0 / 0
Jun 18, 1975	F2	6 mi	4.7 mi	0 / 1
Apr 21, 1967	F2	22 mi	0.3 mi	0 / 0
Apr 21, 1967	F2	25 mi	2.68 mi	0 / 5

The strongest 12 of 120, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.

Hail in Genoa

The Storm Prediction Center has 30 hail reports within 10 miles of Genoa since 1972, made on 25 separate days. Of these, 16 were 1 inch across or larger, and none reached 2 inches. The largest size, 1.75 inches (golf ball size), was reported on 7 days, most recently April 4, 2023. The most recent report is from July 28, 2023. April has the most reports, 8.

Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.

Weather by month in Genoa

The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Marengo, IL, 12 miles north of Genoa at 815 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 84°F and low of 62°F; January is the coolest, at 29°F and 13°F. May and June are the wettest at 4.6 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 1.6 inches; the year adds up to 37.7 inches over 69 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 15 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 147 nights a year. Snowfall averages 30.8 inches a year, most of it in December. That 37.7 inches is more than at 26 of the 146 Illinois stations used on this site (18%). Kingston, 4 miles west, has its own station (De Kalb, IL): 37.3 inches a year, 0.4 less than here, and a July average high of 83°F against 84°F.

Monthly climate normals 1991–2020 at Marengo, IL
Month	High °F	Low °F	Precip. in	Days ≥ 0.1"	Snow in
Jan	29	13	1.7	4	8.0
Feb	33	16	1.6	4	9.1
Mar	45	26	2.1	5	2.4
Apr	59	36	3.8	8	0.4
May	70	47	4.6	8	0.0
Jun	80	57	4.6	7	0.0
Jul	84	62	4.1	6	0.0
Aug	82	60	4.2	7	0.0
Sep	75	52	3.7	5	0.0
Oct	62	40	3.0	6	0.0
Nov	47	29	2.4	5	1.6
Dec	35	19	1.9	4	9.3
Year	58	38	37.7	69	30.8

Averages for 1991–2020 at Marengo, IL (815 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.

Illinois weather by month, station by station →

Floods, thunderstorm wind and lightning near Genoa

Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 147 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Genoa: 124 thunderstorm wind reports, 11 floods, 10 flash floods, 1 heavy rain event and 1 lightning strike. They killed 0 people and injured 16, and the NWS estimated $3.3 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on July 15, 2024. June has had the most flash floods, 3 of 10. Of the 547 Illinois cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 125 have had fewer than Genoa.

August 24, 1998: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Genoa — 12 injured.
September 13, 2008: flood 5 miles from the centre of Genoa — 3 injured, $15,000 damage.
April 5, 1997: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Genoa — 1 injured.

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

DeKalb County, which includes Genoa, has been named in 12 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1973, 8 of them major disasters (by incident: 3 floods, 3 severe storms, 3 snowstorms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 26, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives DeKalb County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, inland flooding and strong wind; Relatively Low for hail, lightning and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $47.4 million a year, the 21st highest of 102 Illinois counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $24.3 million (51%), 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 Genoa

All Illinois cities →All hurricanes since 1851 →Compare Genoa with another place →

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