Tornado Risk in Clark County, IL
Clark County's tornado history, by the numbers
13 tornado tracks have crossed Clark County since 1970 by NOAA's count, roughly one every 5.8 years - the Low band on this site's scale. That is the 36th percentile nationally for tornado frequency. Among 102 Illinois counties in this dataset, Clark County ranks 92 for how often a tornado touches down.
The number that matters more than frequency
No violent (EF4-5) tornado has been recorded in Clark County in NOAA's 76-year database. Of its 13 recorded tracks, 12 were weak (EF0-1) and 1 significant (EF2-3).
Shelter and safe-room economics
Illinois does not currently have a confirmed state rebate layered on top of FEMA's 75% Hazard Mitigation cost-share, so a Clark County homeowner should expect the full national range: $2,890-$13,280, $7,645 typical.
Power after the storm, not just shelter during it
15,076 people live in Clark County, and a tornado outbreak's power loss usually reaches far more of Illinois than the tracks themselves touch. A portable battery unit is the faster, no-fuel way to bridge that outage.
What Clark County's figure does not tell you
Clark County's figure is county-wide, not address-specific. Clark County covers about 501 square miles, so a single touch here counts the same as a single touch in a county a fraction of that size. NOAA also documents that older records undercount weaker tornadoes from before Doppler radar became standard. Clark County has about 15,076 residents.