NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Louisville, 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 Louisville, Illinois since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Ike in 2008. Since 1950, 98 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 7 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 4
- Tornadoes
- 98
- EF3 or stronger
- 7
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
8 deaths in all
What the records show for Louisville
None of the 4 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Louisville; the strongest was Ike in 2008, a tropical storm with 53 mph winds when its centre passed 30 miles away. The record near Louisville begins with an unnamed storm in 1902; the most recent system was Ike in 2008. Of the 4 systems, one has come since 2000. Louisville has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 79% of the 548 Illinois cities on this site. The highest rating among the 98 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4, reached 2 times; the most recent, on June 2, 1990, came within 15 miles. The deadliest, an EF3 on March 31, 2023, killed 6 people. Of the 98, one had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 43 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 30. The most recent tornado was on April 30, 2025. Of the 548 Illinois cities, 81% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Louisville. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 46 times since 1984, with stones up to 3.5 inches. Of the 548 Illinois cities, 84% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Louisville.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Louisville
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | IkeSep 14 | 30 mi | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1941 | Unnamed 1941 stormSep 25 | 10 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 21 | 46 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 28 | 44 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 Louisville: 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 Louisville
By decade
- 2020s13(1 EF3+)
- 2010s15
- 2000s15
- 1990s22(2 EF3+)
- 1980s11
- 1970s7(1 EF3+)
- 1960s7(1 EF3+)
- 1950s8(2 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 2, 1990 | F4 | 15 mi | 12.5 mi | 0 / 6 |
| Jun 2, 1990 | F4 | 15 mi | 23 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Mar 31, 2023 | EF3 | 24 mi | 40.89 mi | 6 / 16 |
| Aug 10, 1974 | F3 | 22 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 6, 1961 | F3 | 18 mi | 21.2 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Dec 18, 1957 | F3 | 25 mi | 4.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Dec 18, 1957 | F3 | 11 mi | 19.6 mi | 0 / 1 |
| May 26, 2024 | EF2 | 11 mi | 8.26 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 3, 2018 | EF2 | 16 mi | 18.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Feb 28, 2011 | EF2 | 22 mi | 0.08 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Feb 28, 2011 | EF2 | 24 mi | 1.26 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 8, 2009 | EF2 | 18 mi | 5.64 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 98, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Louisville
The Storm Prediction Center has 46 hail reports within 10 miles of Louisville since 1984, made on 39 separate days. Of these, 26 were 1 inch across or larger, and 3 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3.5 inches, fell on April 24, 2002. The most recent report is from March 30, 2025. April has the most reports, 14.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Louisville
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Flora 5 NW, IL, 8 miles southwest of Louisville at 500 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 88°F and low of 67°F; January is the coolest, at 40°F and 23°F. May is the wettest at 5.3 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 2.6 inches; the year adds up to 46.4 inches over 75 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 35 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 99 nights a year. Snowfall averages 8.3 inches a year, most of it in January. That 46.4 inches is more than at 132 of the 146 Illinois stations used on this site (90%). Flora, 10 miles south, has its own station (Flora, IL): 48.0 inches a year, 1.6 more than here, and a July average high of 89°F against 88°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 40 | 23 | 3.4 | 6 | 3.1 |
| Feb | 46 | 26 | 2.6 | 5 | 1.7 |
| Mar | 57 | 35 | 3.8 | 7 | 1.4 |
| Apr | 69 | 45 | 4.6 | 7 | 0.0 |
| May | 77 | 55 | 5.3 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 85 | 63 | 4.8 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 88 | 67 | 3.8 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 86 | 65 | 3.4 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 81 | 57 | 3.3 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 70 | 46 | 4.3 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 56 | 36 | 4.1 | 7 | 0.4 |
| Dec | 44 | 27 | 3.0 | 6 | 1.7 |
| Year | 67 | 45 | 46.4 | 75 | 8.3 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Flora 5 NW, IL (500 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 Louisville
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 146 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Louisville: 120 thunderstorm wind reports, 22 flash floods and 4 lightning strikes. They killed 0 people and injured 4, and the NWS estimated $1.5 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 90 mph, on July 13, 2016. Of the 547 Illinois cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 328 have had fewer than Louisville.
June 13, 2011: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Louisville — 3 injured, $10,000 damage.
July 13, 2016: thunderstorm wind 7 miles from the centre of Louisville — 1 injured, $100,000 damage.
NWS: “A mobile home was blown over and destroyed, injuring one person inside. A grain bin was blown 200 feet.”
May 31, 2018: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Louisville — $175,000 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
Clay County, which includes Louisville, has been named in 5 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 2002, 3 of them major disasters (by incident: 2 biological emergencies, 1 hurricane, 1 snowstorm, 1 tornado). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 26, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Clay County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for strong wind; Relatively Low for tornadoes, 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 $11.9 million a year, the 70th highest of 102 Illinois counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $4.3 million (36%), 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 Louisville
- Flora, IL10 mi
- Dieterich, IL14 mi
- Newton, IL20 mi
- Olney, IL22 mi
- Teutopolis, IL22 mi
- Effingham, IL22 mi
- Altamont, IL23 mi
- Saint Elmo, IL27 mi
- Salem, IL28 mi
- Fairfield, IL31 mi
- Wayne City, IL33 mi
- Odin, IL33 mi
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