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NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database

Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Hudson, 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 Hudson, Illinois since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was an unnamed storm in 1932. Since 1950, 190 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 8 of them rated EF3 or stronger.

Hurricanes
0

within 75 mi, since 1851

Tropical storms
1

below hurricane strength

Tornadoes
190

within 25 mi, since 1950

EF3 or stronger
8

3 deaths in all

What the records show for Hudson

None of the 1 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Hudson; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1932, a tropical storm with 39 mph winds when its centre passed 64 miles away. Of the 548 Illinois cities on this site, 57% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Hudson. The highest rating among the 190 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4 or EF4, reached 3 times; the most recent, on November 17, 2013, came within 17 miles. Of the 190, 13 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 80 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 48. The most recent tornado was on December 28, 2025. Hudson has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 91% of the 548 Illinois cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 88 times since 1961, with stones up to 4.25 inches. Of the 548 Illinois cities, 55% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Hudson.

Compare Hudson's storm record with another city →

Tropical storms and hurricanes near Hudson

Tropical systems that passed within 75 miles of Hudson, Illinois, newest first
YearStormClosestStrength when closestPeak
1932Unnamed 1932 stormSep 364 miTropical storm (39 mph)Category 1

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

By decade

  • 2020s22
  • 2010s21(2 EF3+)
  • 2000s37(2 EF3+)
  • 1990s29(1 EF3+)
  • 1980s30
  • 1970s33(2 EF3+)
  • 1960s10
  • 1950s8(1 EF3+)
Strongest tornadoes near Hudson, Illinois
DateRatingDistancePathKilled / injured
Nov 17, 2013EF417 mi46.36 mi3 / 125
Jul 13, 2004F415 mi9.6 mi0 / 3
May 5, 1977F422 mi7.3 mi0 / 2
Feb 28, 2017EF325 mi17.77 mi0 / 0
May 10, 2003F325 mi17.5 mi0 / 32
Apr 19, 1996F321 mi9.4 mi0 / 0
Apr 3, 1974F320 mi7.4 mi0 / 0
Aug 13, 1956F324 mi3.8 mi0 / 0
Dec 1, 2018EF220 mi2.44 mi0 / 0
Feb 28, 2017EF224 mi5.6 mi0 / 0
Jun 22, 2016EF223 mi11.1 mi0 / 4
Jun 5, 2010EF221 mi2.28 mi0 / 0

The strongest 12 of 190, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.

Hail in Hudson

The Storm Prediction Center has 88 hail reports within 10 miles of Hudson since 1961, made on 53 separate days. Of these, 53 were 1 inch across or larger, and 10 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4.25 inches, fell on July 13, 2004. The most recent report is from December 28, 2025. May has the most reports, 23.

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

Weather by month in Hudson

The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Normal 4NE, IL, 6 miles south of Hudson at 790 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 16°F. May is the wettest at 4.8 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.0 inches; the year adds up to 39.3 inches over 76 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 26 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 133 nights a year. Snowfall averages 20.1 inches a year, most of it in January. That 39.3 inches is more than at 63 of the 146 Illinois stations used on this site (43%). El Paso, 8 miles northwest, has its own station (Minonk, IL): 37.7 inches a year, 1.6 less than here, and the same July average high, 86°F.

Monthly climate normals 1991–2020 at Normal 4NE, IL
MonthHigh °FLow °FPrecip. inDays ≥ 0.1"Snow in
Jan33162.467.5
Feb38192.055.5
Mar50282.662.2
Apr63383.780.5
May74504.880.0
Jun83604.180.0
Jul86634.160.0
Aug84613.860.0
Sep79533.250.0
Oct66423.560.0
Nov50312.860.8
Dec38212.363.6
Year624039.37620.1

Averages for 1991–2020 at Normal 4NE, IL (790 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 Hudson

Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 136 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Hudson: 115 thunderstorm wind reports, 16 flash floods, 3 lightning strikes and 2 floods. They killed 0 people and injured 2, and the NWS estimated $4.0 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 86 mph, on June 17, 2026. July has had the most flash floods, 5 of 16. Of the 547 Illinois cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 263 have had fewer than Hudson.

  • June 15, 2008: thunderstorm wind 2 miles from the centre of Hudson — 1 injured, $40,000 damage.

    NWS: “Numerous tree limbs were blown down. One tree limb fell on a person causing a minor head injury.”

  • March 19, 2025: thunderstorm wind 2 miles from the centre of Hudson — 1 injured.

    NWS: “A semi-truck was overturned by thunderstorm wind gusts along I-39. The driver was transported to the hospital.”

  • June 29, 1998: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Hudson — $1.1 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

Flood insurance policyholders in Hudson's ZIP code 61748 have filed 11 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1979, and were paid $22,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 27% 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, 6 have fewer than Hudson.

McLean County, which includes Hudson, has been named in 11 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1968, 7 of them major disasters (by incident: 3 snowstorms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 ice storms, 2 tornadoes). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 26, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives McLean County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, hail, inland flooding, strong wind, lightning and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $81.3 million a year, the 13th highest of 102 Illinois counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $33.5 million (41%), 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 Hudson