NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Westchester, 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 Westchester, Illinois since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was an unnamed storm in 1941. Since 1950, 172 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 8 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 2
- Tornadoes
- 172
- EF3 or stronger
- 8
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
72 deaths in all
What the records show for Westchester
None of the 2 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Westchester; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1900, a tropical storm with 59 mph winds when its centre passed 59 miles away. The record near Westchester begins with an unnamed storm in 1900; the most recent system was an unnamed storm in 1941, a tropical storm 69 miles away. Westchester has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 43% of the 548 Illinois cities on this site. The strongest of the 172 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F5 on August 28, 1990; its path came within 25 miles, and it killed 29 people. The deadliest, an F4 on April 21, 1967, killed 33 people. Of the 172, 7 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 85 have come since 2000. July has had the most tornadoes, 43. The most recent tornado was on March 19, 2025. Westchester has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 77% of the 548 Illinois cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 215 times since 1955, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Westchester has more hail reports within 10 miles than 83% of the 548 Illinois cities.
Compare Westchester's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Westchester
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1941 | Unnamed 1941 stormSep 25 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1900 | Unnamed 1900 stormSep 11 | 59 mi | Tropical storm (59 mph) | Category 4 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Westchester: 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 Westchester
By decade
- 2020s61(1 EF3+)
- 2010s10
- 2000s14
- 1990s10(2 EF3+)
- 1980s15(1 EF3+)
- 1970s26(3 EF3+)
- 1960s22(1 EF3+)
- 1950s14
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 28, 1990 | F5 | 25 mi | 16.4 mi | 29 / 350 |
| Apr 21, 1967 | F4 | 13 mi | 15 mi | 33 / 500 |
| Jun 13, 1976 | F4 | 9 mi | 3.3 mi | 2 / 23 |
| Jun 29, 1979 | F4 | 24 mi | 5.4 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Apr 27, 1984 | F3 | 22 mi | 9 mi | 1 / 5 |
| Jun 20, 2021 | EF3 | 8 mi | 17.6 mi | 0 / 11 |
| Mar 27, 1991 | F3 | 11 mi | 15 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Mar 12, 1976 | F3 | 6 mi | 22.6 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Mar 12, 1976 | F2 | 5 mi | 15.1 mi | 2 / 66 |
| Nov 12, 1965 | F2 | 20 mi | 35.9 mi | 2 / 90 |
| Apr 6, 1972 | F2 | 22 mi | 6.8 mi | 1 / 22 |
| Jun 9, 1966 | F2 | 17 mi | 2.5 mi | 1 / 30 |
The strongest 12 of 172, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Westchester
The Storm Prediction Center has 215 hail reports within 10 miles of Westchester since 1955, made on 122 separate days. Of these, 132 were 1 inch across or larger, and 9 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on June 30, 2011. The most recent report is from August 16, 2025. June has the most reports, 45.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Westchester
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Chicago Midway Airport, IL, 8 miles southeast of Westchester at 612 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 85°F and low of 68°F; January is the coolest, at 33°F and 19°F. May is the wettest at 4.1 inches of precipitation on average and January and February the driest at 1.5 inches; the year adds up to 34.7 inches over 68 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 20 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 106 nights a year. That 34.7 inches is more than at 4 of the 146 Illinois stations used on this site (3%). Hillside, 2 miles northwest, has its own station (Chicago Ohare International Airport, IL): 38.0 inches a year, 3.3 more than here, and the same July average high, 85°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 33 | 19 | 1.5 | 3 |
| Feb | 37 | 23 | 1.5 | 3 |
| Mar | 48 | 32 | 1.9 | 5 |
| Apr | 60 | 41 | 3.6 | 7 |
| May | 71 | 52 | 4.1 | 8 |
| Jun | 81 | 62 | 4.0 | 8 |
| Jul | 85 | 68 | 3.6 | 6 |
| Aug | 83 | 66 | 4.0 | 6 |
| Sep | 76 | 59 | 2.8 | 5 |
| Oct | 63 | 47 | 3.5 | 6 |
| Nov | 49 | 35 | 2.4 | 5 |
| Dec | 38 | 25 | 1.8 | 4 |
| Year | 60 | 44 | 34.7 | 68 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Chicago Midway Airport, IL (612 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 Westchester
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 731 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Westchester: 541 thunderstorm wind reports, 78 flash floods, 69 floods, 24 heavy rain events and 19 lightning strikes. They killed 4 people and injured 38, and the NWS estimated $324.8 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 96 mph, on June 13, 2022. June has had the most flash floods, 23 of 78. Of the 547 Illinois cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 534 have had fewer than Westchester.
August 2, 2015: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Westchester — 2 killed, 19 injured.
June 18, 2010: thunderstorm wind 7 miles from the centre of Westchester — 1 killed, 2 injured.
May 30, 2013: lightning strike 9 miles from the centre of Westchester — 1 killed.
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 Westchester's ZIP code 60154 have filed 595 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1979, and were paid $5.2 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Mid-spring storms in 2013: 139 claims (23% of all) and $1.7 million, then Hurricane Ike in 2008 with 43 and Flooding in 1997 with 23. The year with the most claims was 2010, with 282. 34% 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, 305 have fewer than Westchester.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Mid-spring storms2013 | 139 | $1.7 million |
| Hurricane Ike2008 | 43 | $191,000 |
| Flooding1997 | 23 | $22,000 |
Cook County, which includes Westchester, has been named in 24 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1967, 19 of them major disasters (by incident: 8 floods, 8 severe storms, 4 snowstorms, 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 Cook County a Very High rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for tornadoes, inland flooding, strong wind, lightning and heat waves; Relatively High for hail; Relatively Low for coastal flooding; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $2.42 billion a year, the highest of 102 Illinois counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $1.10 billion (45%), 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 Westchester
- Broadview, IL2 mi
- La Grange Park, IL2 mi
- Hillside, IL2 mi
- Bellwood, IL2 mi
- Brookfield, IL3 mi
- Berkeley, IL3 mi
- Maywood, IL3 mi
- Western Springs, IL3 mi
- Riverside, IL3 mi
- Stone Park, IL3 mi
- Melrose Park, IL4 mi
- Forest Park, IL4 mi
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