NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Rockford, 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 Rockford, Illinois since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was an unnamed storm in 1900. Since 1950, 87 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 3 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 1
- Tornadoes
- 87
- EF3 or stronger
- 3
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
28 deaths in all
What the records show for Rockford
None of the 1 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Rockford; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1900, a tropical storm with 56 mph winds when its centre passed 13 miles away. Of the 548 Illinois cities on this site, 57% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Rockford. The highest rating among the 87 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4 or EF4, reached 2 times; the most recent, on April 9, 2015, came within 12 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on April 21, 1967, killed 24 people. Of the 87, 6 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 57 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 17. The most recent tornado was on June 3, 2025. Of the 548 Illinois cities, 90% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Rockford. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 159 times since 1960, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Rockford has more hail reports within 10 miles than 69% of the 548 Illinois cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Rockford
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900 | Unnamed 1900 stormSep 11 | 13 mi | Tropical storm (56 mph) | Category 4 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Rockford: 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 Rockford
By decade
- 2020s30
- 2010s16(1 EF3+)
- 2000s11(1 EF3+)
- 1990s9
- 1980s5
- 1970s7
- 1960s5(1 EF3+)
- 1950s4
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 21, 1967 | F4 | 8 mi | 25.5 mi | 24 / 450 |
| Apr 9, 2015 | EF4 | 12 mi | 30.14 mi | 2 / 11 |
| Jan 7, 2008 | EF3 | 15 mi | 13.1 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Oct 8, 1958 | F2 | 10 mi | 81 mi | 1 / 0 |
| Nov 22, 2010 | EF2 | 6 mi | 18.1 mi | 0 / 6 |
| Aug 17, 1979 | F2 | 15 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 18, 1975 | F2 | 19 mi | 4.7 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Nov 1, 1971 | F2 | 17 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Aug 30, 1958 | F2 | 4 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 31, 2023 | EF1 | 7 mi | 27.51 mi | 1 / 40 |
| Mar 31, 2023 | EF1 | 10 mi | 17.32 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 31, 2023 | EF1 | 5 mi | 8.63 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 87, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Rockford
The Storm Prediction Center has 159 hail reports within 10 miles of Rockford since 1960, made on 94 separate days. Of these, 110 were 1 inch across or larger, and 12 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 3 inches (tea cup size), was reported on 3 days, most recently April 7, 2020. The most recent report is from July 10, 2025. April has the most reports, 50.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Rockford
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Rockford Gtr Rockford Airport, IL, 5 miles south of Rockford at 730 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 84°F and low of 64°F; January is the coolest, at 29°F and 15°F. June is the wettest at 5.2 inches of precipitation on average and January and February the driest at 1.6 inches; the year adds up to 37.2 inches over 69 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 15 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 136 nights a year. Snowfall averages 37.1 inches a year, most of it in January. That 37.2 inches is more than at 18 of the 146 Illinois stations used on this site (12%). Machesney Park, 6 miles north, has its own station (Beloit, WI): 37.3 inches a year, 0.1 more than here, and a July average high of 80°F against 84°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 29 | 15 | 1.6 | 4 | 10.9 |
| Feb | 33 | 18 | 1.6 | 4 | 8.5 |
| Mar | 47 | 28 | 2.4 | 5 | 4.9 |
| Apr | 60 | 39 | 3.8 | 7 | 0.9 |
| May | 71 | 50 | 4.2 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 81 | 60 | 5.2 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 84 | 64 | 3.8 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 82 | 62 | 4.2 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 75 | 54 | 3.6 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 62 | 42 | 2.6 | 5 | 0.2 |
| Nov | 47 | 31 | 2.3 | 5 | 2.3 |
| Dec | 34 | 20 | 1.9 | 5 | 9.4 |
| Year | 59 | 40 | 37.2 | 69 | 37.1 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Rockford Gtr Rockford Airport, IL (730 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 Rockford
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 283 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Rockford: 206 thunderstorm wind reports, 39 floods, 21 flash floods, 12 heavy rain events and 5 lightning strikes. They killed 2 people and injured 9, and the NWS estimated $13.3 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 96 mph, on May 17, 2017. July has had the most flash floods, 7 of 21. Of the 547 Illinois cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 322 have had fewer than Rockford.
August 11, 2021: thunderstorm wind 3 miles from the centre of Rockford — 1 killed, 2 injured.
NWS: “A tree fell onto a mobile home in the Riverview Mobile Home Park. Three occupants were rescued.”
July 14, 2024: flash flood in Rockford — 1 killed, 1 injured.
NWS: “Around 2115 CST, a pickup truck with two people inside attempted to drive through moving flood waters in a parking lot due to flash flooding of Keith Creek near Charles Street and 22nd Street. The pickup truck was swept away by the flood waters.”
August 8, 2022: lightning strike 1 mile from the centre of Rockford — 3 injured.
NWS: “Lightning struck the St. James Catholic Church at the corner of Prairie Street and 2nd Street.”
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 Rockford's 8 ZIP codes have filed 817 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $13.8 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Flooding in 1996: 54 claims (7% of all) and $401,000, then Mid-spring storms in 2013 with 12. The year with the most claims was 2007, with 192. 8% 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, 312 have fewer than Rockford.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Flooding1996 | 54 | $401,000 |
| Mid-spring storms2013 | 12 | $126,000 |
Winnebago County, which includes Rockford, has been named in 19 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1967, 12 of them major disasters (by incident: 6 snowstorms, 5 floods, 4 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, and Floodng, on September 20, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Winnebago County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for tornadoes, hail, inland flooding, strong wind and lightning; Relatively Moderate for heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $121.6 million a year, the 9th highest of 102 Illinois counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $67.8 million (56%), 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 Rockford
- Loves Park, IL4 mi
- Machesney Park, IL6 mi
- Cherry Valley, IL6 mi
- Winnebago, IL10 mi
- Caledonia, IL10 mi
- Roscoe, IL11 mi
- Belvidere, IL11 mi
- Davis Junction, IL12 mi
- Stillman Valley, IL12 mi
- Rockton, IL13 mi
- Poplar Grove, IL13 mi
- Byron, IL14 mi
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