NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Jonesboro, 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
4 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Jonesboro, Illinois since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Olga in 2019. Since 1950, 130 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 7 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 4
- Tornadoes
- 130
- EF3 or stronger
- 7
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
15 deaths in all
What the records show for Jonesboro
None of the 4 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Jonesboro; the strongest was Ike in 2008, a tropical storm with 48 mph winds when its centre passed 71 miles away. The record near Jonesboro begins with an unnamed storm in 1915; the most recent system was Olga in 2019, a tropical storm 22 miles away. Of the 4 systems, 2 have come since 2000. Jonesboro has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 79% of the 548 Illinois cities on this site. The highest rating among the 130 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4 or EF4, reached 3 times; the most recent, on May 16, 2025, came within 20 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on December 18, 1957, killed 11 people. Of the 130, 8 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 78 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 35. The most recent tornado was on June 7, 2025. Of the 548 Illinois cities, 52% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Jonesboro. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 62 times since 1961, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Of the 548 Illinois cities, 71% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Jonesboro.
Compare Jonesboro's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Jonesboro
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | OlgaOct 26 | 22 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 2008 | IkeSep 14 | 71 mi | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1941 | Unnamed 1941 stormSep 25 | 26 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 20 | 7 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 Jonesboro: 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 Jonesboro
By decade
- 2020s24(2 EF3+)
- 2010s35
- 2000s19(3 EF3+)
- 1990s9
- 1980s9
- 1970s18
- 1960s5
- 1950s11(2 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 18, 1957 | F4 | 21 mi | 28.3 mi | 11 / 200 |
| May 6, 2003 | F4 | 19 mi | 33 mi | 2 / 33 |
| May 16, 2025 | EF4 | 20 mi | 16.28 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Apr 28, 2002 | F3 | 4 mi | 19.3 mi | 1 / 10 |
| May 26, 2024 | EF3 | 20 mi | 4.87 mi | 0 / 1 |
| May 6, 2003 | F3 | 18 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 2 |
| May 21, 1957 | F3 | 10 mi | 8.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Dec 15, 1971 | F2 | 15 mi | 27 mi | 1 / 26 |
| May 16, 2025 | EF2 | 25 mi | 1.39 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 2, 2025 | EF2 | 17 mi | 6.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 2, 2025 | EF2 | 23 mi | 14.67 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 15, 2025 | EF2 | 20 mi | 15.63 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 130, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Jonesboro
The Storm Prediction Center has 62 hail reports within 10 miles of Jonesboro since 1961, made on 48 separate days. Of these, 29 were 1 inch across or larger, and 4 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 2.75 inches (baseball size), was reported on 2 days, most recently July 31, 1967. The most recent report is from February 22, 2024. April has the most reports, 18.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Jonesboro
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Anna 2 NNE, IL, 6 miles northeast of Jonesboro at 640 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 90°F and low of 69°F; January is the coolest, at 45°F and 25°F. May is the wettest at 5.9 inches of precipitation on average and August the driest at 3.2 inches; the year adds up to 51.1 inches over 77 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 43 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 95 nights a year. Snowfall averages 10.4 inches a year, most of it in February. That 51.1 inches is more than at 145 of the 146 Illinois stations used on this site (99%). Makanda, 15 miles northeast, has its own station (Carbondale Sewage Plt, IL): 49.0 inches a year, 2.1 less than here, and a July average high of 88°F against 90°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 45 | 25 | 3.5 | 6 | 2.6 |
| Feb | 50 | 29 | 3.4 | 6 | 4.0 |
| Mar | 61 | 37 | 4.8 | 7 | 0.9 |
| Apr | 71 | 46 | 5.6 | 8 | 0.0 |
| May | 79 | 56 | 5.9 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 87 | 65 | 5.0 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 90 | 69 | 3.7 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 89 | 67 | 3.2 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 84 | 59 | 3.5 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 73 | 48 | 3.9 | 7 | 0.2 |
| Nov | 59 | 37 | 4.5 | 6 | 0.1 |
| Dec | 48 | 30 | 4.1 | 7 | 2.6 |
| Year | 70 | 47 | 51.1 | 77 | 10.4 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Anna 2 NNE, IL (640 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 Jonesboro
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 105 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Jonesboro: 60 thunderstorm wind reports, 20 floods, 17 flash floods, 7 heavy rain events and 1 lightning strike. They killed 1 person and injured 2, and the NWS estimated $5.7 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on May 27, 2017. Of the 547 Illinois cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 278 have had fewer than Jonesboro.
June 16, 2019: flash flood 8 miles from the centre of Jonesboro — 1 killed, $30,000 damage.
May 5, 1996: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Jonesboro — 2 injured, $50,000 damage.
March 18, 2008: flood 5 miles from the centre of Jonesboro — $1.3 million damage.
NWS: “Historic flooding inundated the county after close to 12 inches of rain fell in 48 hours. Levees were overtopped along the Clear Creek drainage district, essentially cutting the county in two.”
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 Jonesboro's ZIP code 62952 have filed 29 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1979, and were paid $165,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Midwest Flooding in 1993: 13 claims (45% of all) and $3,890. 72% 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, 107 have fewer than Jonesboro.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Midwest Flooding1993 | 13 | $3,890 |
Union County, which includes Jonesboro, has been named in 15 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1969, 12 of them major disasters (by incident: 5 floods, 5 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 1 hurricane). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 26, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Union County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for strong wind; Relatively Moderate for heat waves; Relatively Low for tornadoes, hail, inland flooding and lightning; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $14.8 million a year, the 60th highest of 102 Illinois counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $3.7 million (25%), 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.