NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Morrison, 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 Morrison, Illinois since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was an unnamed storm in 1900. Since 1950, 131 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 6 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 1
- Tornadoes
- 131
- EF3 or stronger
- 6
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
2 deaths in all
What the records show for Morrison
None of the 1 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Morrison; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1900, a tropical storm with 53 mph winds when its centre passed 25 miles away. Of the 548 Illinois cities on this site, 57% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Morrison. The strongest of the 131 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on March 29, 1981; its path came within 7 miles. The deadliest, an F3 on June 20, 1974, killed 1 person. Of the 131, 5 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 65 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 28. The most recent tornado was on April 20, 2025. Of the 548 Illinois cities, 51% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Morrison. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 59 times since 1964, with stones up to 2 inches (hen egg size). Of the 548 Illinois cities, 73% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Morrison.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Morrison
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900 | Unnamed 1900 stormSep 11 | 25 mi | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Category 4 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Morrison: 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 Morrison
By decade
- 2020s22
- 2010s35
- 2000s8
- 1990s29(1 EF3+)
- 1980s9(2 EF3+)
- 1970s8(2 EF3+)
- 1960s13(1 EF3+)
- 1950s7
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 29, 1981 | F4 | 7 mi | 5.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 20, 1974 | F3 | 12 mi | 10.6 mi | 1 / 20 |
| Mar 13, 1990 | F3 | 13 mi | 15.5 mi | 0 / 1 |
| May 8, 1988 | F3 | 13 mi | 32 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 5, 1979 | F3 | 24 mi | 5.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jan 24, 1967 | F3 | 16 mi | 7.4 mi | 0 / 12 |
| Apr 6, 1972 | F2 | 25 mi | 17.5 mi | 1 / 9 |
| Mar 31, 2023 | EF2 | 22 mi | 9.32 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 31, 2023 | EF2 | 23 mi | 3.05 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 6, 2017 | EF2 | 22 mi | 34.68 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 15, 2016 | EF2 | 24 mi | 4.78 mi | 0 / 10 |
| Jun 12, 2013 | EF2 | 20 mi | 6.6 mi | 0 / 1 |
The strongest 12 of 131, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Morrison
The Storm Prediction Center has 59 hail reports within 10 miles of Morrison since 1964, made on 43 separate days. Of these, 33 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 2 inches (hen egg size), fell on June 19, 1964. The most recent report is from April 4, 2023. May has the most reports, 19.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Morrison
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Morrison, IL, 2 miles south of Morrison at 632 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 83°F and low of 62°F; January is the coolest, at 29°F and 12°F. June is the wettest at 4.9 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 1.5 inches; the year adds up to 38.3 inches over 69 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 17 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 145 nights a year. Snowfall averages 31.5 inches a year, most of it in January. That 38.3 inches is more than at 41 of the 146 Illinois stations used on this site (28%). Fulton, 10 miles west, has its own station (Fulton L&D #13, IL): 34.3 inches a year, 4.0 less than here, and a July average high of 84°F against 83°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 29 | 12 | 1.5 | 4 | 10.4 |
| Feb | 34 | 16 | 1.7 | 4 | 7.6 |
| Mar | 46 | 27 | 2.5 | 5 | 3.6 |
| Apr | 60 | 37 | 3.8 | 7 | 0.8 |
| May | 71 | 49 | 4.7 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 80 | 59 | 4.9 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 83 | 62 | 4.2 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 81 | 60 | 4.3 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 75 | 51 | 3.4 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 62 | 39 | 2.8 | 5 | 0.1 |
| Nov | 47 | 28 | 2.5 | 5 | 2.7 |
| Dec | 35 | 18 | 2.0 | 5 | 6.3 |
| Year | 59 | 38 | 38.3 | 69 | 31.5 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Morrison, IL (632 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 Morrison
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 77 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Morrison: 67 thunderstorm wind reports, 4 flash floods, 3 heavy rain events, 2 floods and 1 lightning strike. They killed 0 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $1.5 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 92 mph, on November 10, 2020.
August 20, 2010: lightning strike 1 mile from the centre of Morrison — 1 injured.
NWS: “A 12 year old boy was struck by lightning at Southside Elementary School in Morrison, IL just before 2 pm CDT August 20.”
July 29, 2016: flash flood in Morrison — $1.0 million damage.
NWS: “The public reported several roads were closed in Morrison due to high water across the roads.”
August 25, 2014: thunderstorm wind in Morrison — $250,000 damage.
NWS: “Wind gusts estimated to be 75 mph blew down numerous trees across all of Morrison, IL around 220 pm CDT August 25. There was widespread tree damage across town with some trees on power lines and residences.”
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 Morrison's ZIP code 61270 have filed 23 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1986, and were paid $211,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 17% 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, 80 have fewer than Morrison.
Whiteside County, which includes Morrison, has been named in 14 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 11 of them major disasters (by incident: 7 floods, 2 biological emergencies, 2 snowstorms, 1 hurricane). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 26, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Whiteside County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for strong wind; Relatively Moderate for tornadoes and hail; Relatively Low for inland flooding, lightning and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $24.6 million a year, the 39th highest of 102 Illinois counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $12.8 million (52%), 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 Morrison
- Fulton, IL10 mi
- Erie, IL13 mi
- Thomson, IL13 mi
- Clinton, IA13 mi
- Sterling, IL13 mi
- Prophetstown, IL14 mi
- Rock Falls, IL15 mi
- Camanche, IA17 mi
- Mount Carroll, IL19 mi
- Savanna, IL21 mi
- Lanark, IL21 mi
- Polo, IL23 mi
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