NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Riverton, 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
2 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Riverton, Illinois since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Ike in 2008. Since 1950, 185 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 11 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 2
- Tornadoes
- 185
- EF3 or stronger
- 11
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
5 deaths in all
What the records show for Riverton
None of the 2 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Riverton; the strongest was Ike in 2008, a tropical storm with 53 mph winds when its centre passed 62 miles away. The record near Riverton begins with an unnamed storm in 1902; the most recent system was Ike in 2008. Riverton has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 43% of the 548 Illinois cities on this site. The strongest of the 185 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on June 14, 1957; its path came within 8 miles, and it killed 2 people. Of the 185, 10 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 107 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 42. The most recent tornado was on December 28, 2025. Riverton has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 87% of the 548 Illinois cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 150 times since 1956, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Riverton has more hail reports within 10 miles than 65% of the 548 Illinois cities.
Compare Riverton's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Riverton
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | IkeSep 14 | 62 mi | Tropical storm (53 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 28 | 48 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 Riverton: 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 Riverton
By decade
- 2020s33
- 2010s22(2 EF3+)
- 2000s52(1 EF3+)
- 1990s21(2 EF3+)
- 1980s12
- 1970s31(3 EF3+)
- 1960s7(1 EF3+)
- 1950s7(2 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 14, 1957 | F4 | 8 mi | 4.3 mi | 2 / 50 |
| Apr 3, 1974 | F3 | 23 mi | 20.9 mi | 1 / 26 |
| Apr 22, 1963 | F3 | in town | 42.9 mi | 1 / 5 |
| Dec 1, 2018 | EF3 | 23 mi | 12.49 mi | 0 / 22 |
| Dec 31, 2010 | EF3 | 18 mi | 3.63 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Aug 19, 2009 | EF3 | 7 mi | 24.27 mi | 0 / 19 |
| Apr 19, 1996 | F3 | 19 mi | 14.5 mi | 0 / 29 |
| May 9, 1995 | F3 | 7 mi | 50 mi | 0 / 6 |
| Jul 26, 1978 | F3 | 8 mi | 8.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 6, 1977 | F3 | 15 mi | 4.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 27, 1951 | F3 | 20 mi | 9.6 mi | 0 / 35 |
| Dec 28, 2025 | EF2 | 23 mi | 23.36 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 185, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Riverton
The Storm Prediction Center has 150 hail reports within 10 miles of Riverton since 1956, made on 90 separate days. Of these, 80 were 1 inch across or larger, and 3 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3 inches (tea cup size), fell on April 8, 2020. The most recent report is from June 8, 2025. May has the most reports, 56.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Riverton
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Springfield Capital Airport, IL, 8 miles west of Riverton at 594 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 87°F and low of 66°F; January is the coolest, at 36°F and 20°F. June is the wettest at 4.6 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 1.9 inches; the year adds up to 38.2 inches over 68 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 28 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 111 nights a year. Snowfall averages 21.8 inches a year, most of it in January. That 38.2 inches is more than at 39 of the 146 Illinois stations used on this site (27%). Springfield, 9 miles southwest, has its own station (Springfield #2, IL): 40.5 inches a year, 2.3 more than here, and a July average high of 86°F against 87°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 36 | 20 | 2.0 | 5 | 6.7 |
| Feb | 41 | 24 | 1.9 | 5 | 6.1 |
| Mar | 53 | 33 | 2.8 | 6 | 3.1 |
| Apr | 66 | 43 | 4.0 | 7 | 0.3 |
| May | 76 | 54 | 4.5 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 84 | 63 | 4.6 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 87 | 66 | 3.9 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 85 | 64 | 3.4 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 80 | 56 | 2.9 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 67 | 45 | 3.3 | 6 | 0.1 |
| Nov | 53 | 34 | 2.7 | 6 | 1.2 |
| Dec | 41 | 25 | 2.2 | 5 | 4.3 |
| Year | 64 | 44 | 38.2 | 68 | 21.8 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Springfield Capital Airport, IL (594 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 Riverton
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 237 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Riverton: 202 thunderstorm wind reports, 24 flash floods, 7 lightning strikes and 4 floods. They killed 0 people and injured 5, and the NWS estimated $25.9 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on May 27, 2013. August has had the most flash floods, 8 of 24. Of the 547 Illinois cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 349 have had fewer than Riverton.
May 24, 2004: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Riverton — 2 injured, $80,000 damage.
June 20, 2000: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Riverton — 1 injured, $11,000 damage.
July 19, 2006: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Riverton — 1 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
Flood insurance policyholders in Riverton's ZIP code 62561 have filed 20 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1979, and were paid $233,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 35% 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, 70 have fewer than Riverton.
Sangamon County, which includes Riverton, has been named in 12 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1974, 9 of them major disasters (by incident: 4 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 snowstorms, 1 flood). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms and Flooding, on August 15, 2023. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Sangamon County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for tornadoes, hail, strong wind and lightning; Relatively Moderate for inland flooding and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $114.8 million a year, the 10th highest of 102 Illinois counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $46.7 million (41%), 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.