NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Kankakee, 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 Kankakee, Illinois since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Ike in 2008. Since 1950, 137 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 7 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 3
- Tornadoes
- 137
- EF3 or stronger
- 7
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
4 deaths in all
What the records show for Kankakee
None of the 3 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Kankakee; the strongest was Ike in 2008, a tropical storm with 58 mph winds when its centre passed 66 miles away. The record near Kankakee begins with an unnamed storm in 1932; the most recent system was Ike in 2008. Kankakee has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 62% of the 548 Illinois cities on this site. The strongest of the 137 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on April 17, 1963; its path came within 3 miles, and it killed 1 person. The deadliest, an F1 on June 25, 1978, killed 1 person. Of the 137, 10 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 90 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 48. The most recent tornado was on December 28, 2025. Kankakee has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 51% of the 548 Illinois cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 87 times since 1960, with stones up to 4 inches (softball size). Of the 548 Illinois cities, 55% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Kankakee.
Compare Kankakee's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Kankakee
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | IkeSep 14 | 66 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1941 | Unnamed 1941 stormSep 25 | 43 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormSep 3 | 41 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Kankakee: 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 Kankakee
By decade
- 2020s28
- 2010s38(2 EF3+)
- 2000s24
- 1990s14
- 1980s8(1 EF3+)
- 1970s12(1 EF3+)
- 1960s7(2 EF3+)
- 1950s6(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 17, 1963 | F4 | 3 mi | 57.3 mi | 1 / 70 |
| Mar 12, 1976 | F3 | 12 mi | 38.5 mi | 1 / 15 |
| Apr 7, 1954 | F3 | 4 mi | 42.6 mi | 1 / 13 |
| Jun 22, 2015 | EF3 | 14 mi | 16.26 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Jun 5, 2010 | EF3 | 7 mi | 7.75 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Apr 2, 1982 | F3 | 3 mi | 12 mi | 0 / 15 |
| Apr 23, 1961 | F3 | 10 mi | 51.7 mi | 0 / 4 |
| Jun 30, 2014 | EF2 | 18 mi | 3.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 17, 2013 | EF2 | 21 mi | 5.21 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 17, 2013 | EF2 | 22 mi | 12.02 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Oct 26, 2010 | EF2 | 15 mi | 2.32 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Jun 7, 2008 | EF2 | 23 mi | 6.52 mi | 0 / 6 |
The strongest 12 of 137, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Kankakee
The Storm Prediction Center has 87 hail reports within 10 miles of Kankakee since 1960, made on 68 separate days. Of these, 52 were 1 inch across or larger, and 6 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4 inches (softball size), fell on June 8, 1981. The most recent report is from July 10, 2025. May has the most reports, 26.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Kankakee
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Kankakee Metro Wastewater, IL, 2 miles northwest of Kankakee at 600 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 85°F and low of 65°F; January is the coolest, at 33°F and 16°F. May and June are the wettest at 5.2 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 1.9 inches; the year adds up to 41.9 inches over 70 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 21 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 129 nights a year. Snowfall averages 20.7 inches a year, most of it in January. That 41.9 inches is more than at 104 of the 146 Illinois stations used on this site (71%). Clifton, 13 miles south, has its own station (Watseka 2 NW, IL): 38.5 inches a year, 3.4 less than here, and the same July average high, 85°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 33 | 16 | 2.4 | 5 | 8.1 |
| Feb | 37 | 20 | 1.9 | 5 | 3.4 |
| Mar | 49 | 29 | 2.5 | 5 | 3.0 |
| Apr | 61 | 39 | 3.9 | 7 | 0.3 |
| May | 73 | 51 | 5.2 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 82 | 61 | 5.2 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 85 | 65 | 4.7 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 83 | 63 | 3.9 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 78 | 55 | 3.6 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 65 | 43 | 3.4 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 50 | 32 | 2.8 | 5 | 0.6 |
| Dec | 38 | 22 | 2.4 | 5 | 5.3 |
| Year | 61 | 41 | 41.9 | 70 | 20.7 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Kankakee Metro Wastewater, IL (600 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 Kankakee
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 207 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Kankakee: 162 thunderstorm wind reports, 21 floods, 12 flash floods, 8 heavy rain events and 4 lightning strikes. They killed 0 people and injured 4, and the NWS estimated $5.2 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 90 mph, on August 4, 2008. June has had the most flash floods, 5 of 12. Of the 547 Illinois cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 179 have had fewer than Kankakee.
August 23, 2007: thunderstorm wind 3 miles from the centre of Kankakee — 3 injured, $500,000 damage.
October 3, 2013: lightning strike 2 miles from the centre of Kankakee — 1 injured.
NWS: “A golfer standing near a tree was struck by lightning. His injuries were not life threatening and he was treated and released.”
February 20, 2018: flood 9 miles from the centre of Kankakee — $1.5 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 Kankakee's ZIP code 60901 have filed 326 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $6.0 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Flooding in 1985: 23 claims (7% of all) and $130,000. The year with the most claims was 2018, with 58. 10% 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, 290 have fewer than Kankakee.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Flooding1985 | 23 | $130,000 |
Kankakee County, which includes Kankakee, has been named in 7 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1973, 3 of them major disasters (by incident: 2 biological emergencies, 2 snowstorms, 1 flood, 1 hurricane). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 26, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Kankakee County a Relatively Moderate 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 $68.2 million a year, the 15th highest of 102 Illinois counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $48.3 million (71%), 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.