Marshall County, Illinois

What hazards hit Marshall County most?

The most frequent records are severe thunderstorm wind events: 159 since 1968. 52% of its severe thunderstorm wind events since 1968 fell in June and July. The rank column places the county among Illinois's counties by days with a record per 1,000 square miles of land over each hazard's complete period.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database (county and forecast-zone records attributed to the county; a zone record shows its own totals on each county it covers). Days: dates with at least one record of the hazard in the county. Ranks: days with a record per 1,000 square miles of land (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer), since 1950 for tornadoes, 1955 for hail and thunderstorm wind, 1996 for the rest.

How many tornadoes has Marshall County had?

NOAA records 18 tornadoes in Marshall County from 1965 to 2026, the strongest rated EF3, with 0 deaths and 1 injury recorded in the county. A tornado that crossed a county line is counted in each county it touched, with the length of its path inside the county.

Counted as whole tornadoes rather than county records, the Storm Prediction Center's database holds 18 tornadoes whose track touched Marshall County since 1950 (NOAA's county records number 18, the same count); along their whole tracks they killed 0 people.

Map of the strongest tornado tracks in Illinois.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, tornado records by county (path length in the county, maximum width); ratings as published: F scale before February 1, 2007, EF scale after. Whole-track figures: NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database (1950-2025). SPC severe weather database.

When was the last damaging storm in Marshall County?

The most recent record with damage, injuries or deaths is the February 28, 2017 tornado ($602,000 in damage in 2025 dollars).

The tornado crossed from Woodford County into Marshall County at 5:31 PM CST. It tracked northeastward through southern Marshall County...destroying outbuildings and damaging house roofs and trees, as it widened to about 600 yards southwest of La Rose. The tornado weakened in southeast Marshall County as it crossed I-39 west of Rutland, then crossed into LaSalle County in the National Weather Service Chicago County Warning Area (CWA) at 5:49 PM CST.
National Weather Service event narrative, NOAA Storm Events Database (search the full record, event 678123)

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database; every record of 2025-2026 is listed, earlier ones when they caused deaths, injuries or $250,000 of damage (2025 dollars), and every tornado.

The deadliest and costliest records

A damage figure marked "step" is a record from before 1993: NOAA then filed damage by category, and the figure is the category as entered, in the dollars of that year, not an estimate of the loss.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths and injuries direct and indirect; damage is property plus crops as estimated by the National Weather Service, converted to 2025 dollars.

Is it getting more frequent?

Records per decade for Marshall County's most frequent hazards. Counts rose everywhere after 1996, when NOAA began recording every event type, so compare decades within a hazard's complete period only (the shaded cells come before it).

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records per calendar decade; zone records from the CZ_TYPE field (Z).

What time of year?

52% of its severe thunderstorm wind events since 1968 fell in June and July. The two busiest months are in violet.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began.

Federal disaster declarations for Marshall County

FEMA's register lists 14 declarations that include Marshall County: 8 major disasters, 6 emergencies and 0 fire management assistance declarations. Most were for snowstorm (5) and flood (4).

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2), declarations through October 2, 2026; one declaration is counted once however many areas it names. OpenFEMA dataset page.

How many floods has Marshall County had?

NOAA's Storm Events Database holds 33 flood or flash flood records for Marshall County from 1996 to 2021, on 28 days, with 0 deaths. By flood insurance claims since 1978 (OpenFEMA, as of September 8, 2026), Marshall County ranks 1411th of 2,942 U.S. counties.

The National Flood Insurance Program has paid $737,000 on 81 claims filed in Marshall County; the most in one year was 16 in 1982. Claims count insured losses only: uninsured flood damage is not in this file.

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims, as of September 8, 2026; claims by year of loss, payments in the dollars of the year paid. OpenFEMA dataset page.

FEMA's modeled risk for Marshall County

FEMA's National Risk Index rates Marshall County Very Low overall, with an expected annual loss of $8.7 million. These are FEMA's model estimates of future loss from 18 hazards, not a count of what happened; they can differ from the record above.

Source: FEMA National Risk Index, county table, December 2025 release. FEMA's National Risk Index map.

Counties that share a border with Marshall County

1. LaSalle County 935
2. Peoria County 875
3. Bureau County 832
4. Woodford County 588
5. Marshall County 397
6. Putnam County 373
7. Stark County 286

Source: U.S. Census Bureau county adjacency file; NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1950. The Census Bureau's adjacency file.

Next

• Tornadoes in IllinoisEvery Illinois tornado since 1950 and the counties with the most per square mile
• Severe thunderstorm wind in IllinoisThe state's severe thunderstorm wind events, by county, year and month
• The Illinois recordEvery hazard in the state, its deadliest events and its federal declarations
• FEMA's risk rating for each hazard in Marshall CountyThe hazard risk calculator: 18 hazards beside the county's record
• Download Marshall County's FEMA declarations (CSV)14 rows: every declaration that named the county, for your own analysis