NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Leland, 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 Leland, Illinois since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was an unnamed storm in 1900. Since 1950, 128 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 8 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 1
- Tornadoes
- 128
- EF3 or stronger
- 8
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
43 deaths in all
What the records show for Leland
None of the 1 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Leland; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1900, a tropical storm with 55 mph winds when its centre passed 60 miles away. Of the 548 Illinois cities on this site, 57% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Leland. The strongest of the 128 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F5 on August 28, 1990; its path came within 23 miles, and it killed 29 people. Of the 128, 7 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 80 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 38. The most recent tornado was on March 14, 2025. Of the 548 Illinois cities, 53% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Leland. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 35 times since 1978, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Of the 548 Illinois cities, 92% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Leland.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Leland
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900 | Unnamed 1900 stormSep 11 | 60 mi | Tropical storm (55 mph) | Category 4 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Leland: 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 Leland
By decade
- 2020s34
- 2010s30(1 EF3+)
- 2000s16(1 EF3+)
- 1990s6(1 EF3+)
- 1980s8(1 EF3+)
- 1970s18(3 EF3+)
- 1960s7
- 1950s9(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 28, 1990 | F5 | 23 mi | 16.4 mi | 29 / 350 |
| Apr 20, 2004 | F3 | 23 mi | 15.8 mi | 8 / 12 |
| Feb 28, 2017 | EF3 | 18 mi | 11.5 mi | 2 / 14 |
| Apr 27, 1984 | F3 | 24 mi | 9 mi | 1 / 5 |
| Dec 6, 1951 | F3 | 17 mi | 21.9 mi | 1 / 1 |
| Jun 30, 1977 | F3 | 7 mi | 6.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 12, 1976 | F3 | 23 mi | 22.6 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Jul 17, 1972 | F3 | 19 mi | 81.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Nov 12, 1965 | F2 | 22 mi | 35.9 mi | 2 / 90 |
| Mar 31, 2023 | EF2 | 21 mi | 9.29 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 22, 2016 | EF2 | 18 mi | 8.05 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 22, 2015 | EF2 | 21 mi | 7.8 mi | 0 / 7 |
The strongest 12 of 128, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Leland
The Storm Prediction Center has 35 hail reports within 10 miles of Leland since 1978, made on 21 separate days. Of these, 26 were 1 inch across or larger, and 7 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on April 4, 2023. The most recent report is from July 10, 2025. April has the most reports, 10.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Leland
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Paw Paw 2S, IL, 10 miles west of Leland at 889 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 82°F and low of 62°F; January is the coolest, at 28°F and 12°F. May is the wettest at 4.8 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 1.6 inches; the year adds up to 36.6 inches over 69 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 8 days a year, almost all from June to August. Lows fall below freezing on about 148 nights a year. Snowfall averages 30.1 inches a year, most of it in January. That 36.6 inches is more than at 11 of the 146 Illinois stations used on this site (8%). Somonauk, 5 miles east, has its own station (Chicago Aurora Municipal Airport, IL): 33.9 inches a year, 2.7 less than here, and a July average high of 84°F against 82°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 28 | 12 | 1.6 | 4 | 9.6 |
| Feb | 32 | 16 | 1.7 | 4 | 6.7 |
| Mar | 45 | 26 | 2.2 | 6 | 3.6 |
| Apr | 59 | 36 | 3.2 | 7 | 0.9 |
| May | 70 | 48 | 4.8 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 80 | 58 | 4.6 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 82 | 62 | 3.9 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 80 | 60 | 3.7 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 75 | 52 | 3.6 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 63 | 40 | 3.0 | 6 | 0.1 |
| Nov | 46 | 28 | 2.4 | 5 | 1.7 |
| Dec | 33 | 18 | 1.9 | 4 | 7.5 |
| Year | 58 | 38 | 36.6 | 69 | 30.1 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Paw Paw 2S, IL (889 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 Leland
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 117 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Leland: 100 thunderstorm wind reports, 6 floods, 5 flash floods, 4 lightning strikes and 2 heavy rain events. They killed 1 person and injured 10, and the NWS estimated $75.3 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 92 mph, on June 12, 2013. August has had the most flash floods, 2 of 5. Of the 547 Illinois cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 28 have had fewer than Leland.
April 18, 2013: flash flood 10 miles from the centre of Leland — 1 killed, $75.0 million damage.
September 14, 2008: flood 10 miles from the centre of Leland — 5 injured, $15,000 damage.
July 27, 2003: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Leland — 2 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
LaSalle County, which includes Leland, has been named in 20 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1967, 14 of them major disasters (by incident: 6 floods, 5 snowstorms, 4 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 26, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives LaSalle County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for strong wind; Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, inland flooding and lightning; Relatively Low for hail and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $60.5 million a year, the 16th highest of 102 Illinois counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $33.1 million (55%), 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 Leland
- Somonauk, IL5 mi
- Earlville, IL7 mi
- Sandwich, IL8 mi
- Sheridan, IL8 mi
- Waterman, IL10 mi
- Hinckley, IL13 mi
- Plano, IL13 mi
- Newark, IL15 mi
- Mendota, IL17 mi
- Yorkville, IL18 mi
- Ottawa, IL19 mi
- Marseilles, IL20 mi
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