NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Harrisburg, 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 Harrisburg, Illinois since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Olga in 2019. Since 1950, 77 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 8 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 3
- Tornadoes
- 77
- EF3 or stronger
- 8
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
23 deaths in all
What the records show for Harrisburg
None of the 3 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Harrisburg; the strongest was Olga in 2019, a tropical storm with 41 mph winds when its centre passed 13 miles away. The record near Harrisburg begins with an unnamed storm in 1915; the most recent system was Olga in 2019. Harrisburg has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 62% of the 548 Illinois cities on this site. The highest rating among the 77 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4 or EF4, reached 4 times; the most recent, on May 16, 2025, came within 15 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on May 29, 1982, killed 10 people. Of the 77, 6 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 51 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 22. Of the 548 Illinois cities, 95% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Harrisburg. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 75 times since 1984, with stones up to 3.5 inches. Of the 548 Illinois cities, 63% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Harrisburg.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Harrisburg
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | OlgaOct 26 | 13 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1941 | Unnamed 1941 stormSep 25 | 49 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 20 | 15 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 Harrisburg: 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 Harrisburg
By decade
- 2020s21(2 EF3+)
- 2010s20(1 EF3+)
- 2000s10(1 EF3+)
- 1990s7(1 EF3+)
- 1980s7(1 EF3+)
- 1970s8(1 EF3+)
- 1960s2(1 EF3+)
- 1950s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 29, 1982 | F4 | 16 mi | 17 mi | 10 / 181 |
| Feb 29, 2012 | EF4 | in town | 26.09 mi | 8 / 108 |
| May 6, 2003 | F4 | 24 mi | 33 mi | 2 / 33 |
| May 16, 2025 | EF4 | 15 mi | 16.28 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Apr 21, 1972 | F3 | 12 mi | 0.3 mi | 3 / 0 |
| May 26, 2024 | EF3 | 23 mi | 4.87 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Nov 19, 1991 | F3 | 21 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 16 |
| Mar 16, 1963 | F3 | 11 mi | 0.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 16, 2025 | EF2 | 11 mi | 9.93 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 2, 2025 | EF2 | 25 mi | 6.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 15, 2025 | EF2 | 16 mi | 15.63 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 2, 2024 | EF2 | 9 mi | 1.14 mi | 0 / 2 |
The strongest 12 of 77, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Harrisburg
The Storm Prediction Center has 75 hail reports within 10 miles of Harrisburg since 1984, made on 59 separate days. Of these, 29 were 1 inch across or larger, and 4 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3.5 inches, fell on August 6, 2019. The most recent report is from April 4, 2025. April has the most reports, 21.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Harrisburg
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Harrisburg, IL, 1 mile northeast of Harrisburg at 365 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 89°F and low of 68°F; January is the coolest, at 43°F and 24°F. April is the wettest at 5.3 inches of precipitation on average and February and September the driest at 3.1 inches; the year adds up to 47.7 inches over 71 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 43 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 95 nights a year. That 47.7 inches is more than at 135 of the 146 Illinois stations used on this site (92%). Thompsonville, 17 miles northwest, has its own station (Mcleansboro, IL): 47.2 inches a year, 0.5 less than here, and the same July average high, 89°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 43 | 24 | 3.8 | 6 |
| Feb | 48 | 28 | 3.1 | 6 |
| Mar | 58 | 36 | 4.9 | 7 |
| Apr | 69 | 46 | 5.3 | 8 |
| May | 78 | 57 | 4.3 | 7 |
| Jun | 86 | 65 | 4.9 | 6 |
| Jul | 89 | 68 | 3.5 | 5 |
| Aug | 88 | 66 | 3.6 | 5 |
| Sep | 82 | 57 | 3.1 | 5 |
| Oct | 71 | 45 | 3.8 | 5 |
| Nov | 57 | 36 | 4.0 | 6 |
| Dec | 47 | 29 | 3.4 | 6 |
| Year | 68 | 46 | 47.7 | 71 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Harrisburg, IL (365 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 Harrisburg
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 155 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Harrisburg: 110 thunderstorm wind reports, 25 flash floods, 10 floods and 10 heavy rain events. They killed 1 person and injured 0, and the NWS estimated $21.6 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 100 mph, on June 21, 1998. April has had the most flash floods, 5 of 25. Of the 547 Illinois cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 356 have had fewer than Harrisburg.
May 1, 2017: flood 3 miles from the centre of Harrisburg — 1 killed, $30,000 damage.
NWS: “The middle fork of the Saline River remained flooded for much of the month. An elderly man drowned after driving around barricades to a bridge over the river.”
March 18, 2008: flood 8 miles from the centre of Harrisburg — $16.8 million damage.
May 8, 2024: flash flood 8 miles from the centre of Harrisburg — $800,000 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 Harrisburg's ZIP code 62946 have filed 16 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 2011, and were paid $345,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 44% 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, 52 have fewer than Harrisburg.
Saline County, which includes Harrisburg, has been named in 9 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1996, 6 of them major disasters (by incident: 4 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 1 hurricane, 1 snowstorm). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 26, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Saline County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for strong wind; Relatively Moderate for tornadoes; Relatively Low for hail, inland flooding, lightning and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $20.4 million a year, the 50th highest of 102 Illinois counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $5.9 million (29%), 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 Harrisburg
- Carrier Mills, IL6 mi
- Eldorado, IL9 mi
- Galatia, IL9 mi
- Thompsonville, IL17 mi
- Creal Springs, IL18 mi
- Marion, IL21 mi
- Norris City, IL21 mi
- Johnston City, IL22 mi
- West Frankfort, IL24 mi
- Golconda, IL24 mi
- Mc Leansboro, IL25 mi
- Goreville, IL26 mi
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