Tornadoes in Southernmost Illinois

Alexander County Tornadoes

APR 03, 1957    006   1400     0      5     F2     
APR 17, 1960    010   0356     0      4     F1     
APR 19, 1970    002   1650     0      0     F1     
JLY 08, 1970    014   0630     0      1     F1     
MAR 15, 1971          0015     0      0     F0   
APR 21, 1972    010   1700     0      1     F2     
JAN 18, 1973    001   1415     0      0     F1   
MAR 19, 1984    002   1908     0      0     F0    

Johnson County Tornadoes

DEC 18, 1957    039   1800     0      0     F2     
APR 14, 1972    009   0352     0      5     F2     
JUN 22, 1974    073   1600     0      0     F2     
MAR 28, 1975    004   1625     0      0     F0     
MAY 15, 1986    004   1735     0      0     F1 

Jackson County Tornadoes

NOV 13, 1951    004   1450     0      7     F2      
MAY 21, 1957    014   1807     0      0     F3    
DEC 18, 1957    029   1600     0      0     F2     
DEC 18, 1957    033   1645    11    180     F4     
DEC 18, 1957    035   1725     0      5     F2     
APR 05, 1958          1610     0      5     F3      
MAR 25, 1970    001   1810     0      1     F2     
JUN 01, 1970    007   1700     0      5     F2     
AUG 21, 1971    011   1330     0      0     F1     
JUN 02, 1973    022   1804     0      0     F0     
NOV 09, 1984    031   1800     0      0     F1     
NOV 09, 1984    033   2147     0      0     F0     
MAY 08, 1988    007   1540     0      0     F1     
JUN 14, 1990    028   1006     0      0     F1     
AUG 19, 1995    076   1600     0      0     F0   

Pulaski County Tornadoes
 
APR 03, 1957    006   1408     0      0     F2      
JUN 21, 1967    034   1900     0      0     F2     
APR 21, 1972    010   1703     0      2     F2 

Southern Illinois' most destructive tornadoes

April 21, 1912: A tornado tore through Carbondale, Bush, De Soto and Murphysboro. Around 100 people were injured and 18 died as a result of the twister. Some 80 structures were destroyed.

March 18, 1925: Called the "nation's most destructive tornado." In Murphysboro - 1,200 homes destroyed; 8,000 homeless, 250 killed, 800 injured; In De Soto, 125 killed; In West Frankfort, 189 killed; in Gorham, 37 people killed, 200 injured. The tornado was on the ground in the Midwest for 219 miles, killing 695 people and leaving 7,000 homeless. A total of $100 million in damage. If that figure was updated to today's dollars (2004), the damage would be over $1 billion.

Dec. 18, 1957: Murphysboro area - 10 killed, 60 injured, 200 homes damaged. Also damaged other area towns including Mount Vernon where one boy was killed. Estimated $5 million damage.

Dec. 21 1967: Tornadoes in Randolph County destroy homes and businesses. Two Percy area residents are injured.

April 27, 1971: A tornado hit Thompsonville, killing one person and injuring 12. Damage was estimated at $500,000.

March 30, 1982: A tornado touched down in Ina, destroying 14 homes, damaging 41 others. One person died.

May 29, 1982: Ten die in Marion - Millions of dollars in damage. Also virtually destroyed is the small community of Conant, six miles west of Pinckneyville which suffered $167,000 damage; nine homes destroyed; six injured.

May 18, 1995: Twister hits Monroe, Marion counties. Damage to dozens of structures, but minimal injuries.

April 21, 2002: A small tornado measuring F1 on a scale of F0 to F5, packing winds from 73 to 112 miles per hour hit southern Illinois. One man died in Wayne City when a twister tore through that area, upending his mobile home. Around 50 injured in Wayne County and several people injured in Centralia.

April 28, 2002:Tornadoes and microbursts cause widespread damage in southern Illinois. One person killed in Dongola, the grade school is destroyed in Cypress and in Galatia, 55 homes and six businesses are reported damaged and two homes demolished. Also in Sesser, a microburst with winds of 80-90 mph carves a path three miles long and half a mile wide in the community.

May 6, 2003: Tornadoes rake Alexander, Massac, Pulaski, Pope Counties. Two deaths reported, one in Massac County and one in Pulaski County. More than 40 injured and dozens of homes destroyed or damaged. Schools damaged in Cairo and Golconda.

November 1991 microburst: The Nov. 19 storm in Marion destroyed or severely damaged about 75 homes, four businesses, a fire station and the high school. Damage was estimated at $10 million.

Tornado facts

On March 18, 1925, the world's longest, fastest, widest and deadliest tornado ripped through Southern Illinois. Labeled the Tri-State Tornado, the storm killed 695 people and injured 2,279 as it crossed Missouri, Illinois and Indiana. It first touched down northwest of Ellington, Mo., and began a 219-mile journey across 13 counties in three states. Its path was three-quarters of a mile to one mile wide. The tornado destroyed 15,000 houses in its path.

On Dec. 18, 1957, the U.S. Weather Bureau reported 23 separate tornadoes causing damage in the millions of dollars. Hundreds were injured and 15 were killed: one in Mount Vernon, 10 in Murphysboro, one in Sand Ridge and three in Sunfield.

On May 29, 1982, a tornado carved an 11-mile path of destruction from 100 to 900 feet wide, starting in Carterville and touching down a few times before cutting across Marion. Damage was estimated at $75 million, including $60 million worth of damage to businesses. Ten people died in Marion, 187 were injured, nine homes were destroyed, and 72 businesses were damaged or destroyed.

The 1925 tornado killed 234 people, injured 800 and destroyed 40 percent of the homes in Murphysboro alone.

A series of winter tornadoes roared through Southern Illinois, from Murphysboro to near Mount Vernon, on Dec. 18 and 19, 1957, leaving 12 dead (10 in Murphysboro) and a damage total well into the millions.

Most of the injuries and deaths are caused by flying debris carried along by the funnel. The risks are still there: Since 1950, Illinois has averaged 31 tornadoes a year; in 1974 there were 107. Half of them occur between 3 and 7 p.m., but they can strike any time of day.

Southern Illinois microbursts

January, 2000: A microburst with winds of up to 130 mph wreaked havoc in eastern Jackson County and western Williamson County, knocking trees onto homes, power poles and streets, and tearing off roofs.

The weather phenomenon left a path of damage about one mile wide and five miles long. As the pathway entered western Williamson County, primarily Cambria, winds slowed to about 80 to 90 mph.

The roof of a large pole barn owned by the village of Cambria was one structure that fell victim to the wind.

Crews from the National Weather Service were assessing damage. Crews were also looking over damage caused by strong winds just east of Marion at Fabick Machinery, 1601 E. Main St.

Those winds left the warehouse with two large holes in its roof, shattered windows and gave an employee minor injuries.

November 1991: Microburst: The Nov. 19 storm in Marion destroyed or severely damaged about 75 homes, four businesses, a fire station and the high school. Damage was estimated at $10 million.

-- Southern Illinoisan