IL

Storm restoration across Stephenson County

Stephenson County sits in the northwestern corner of Illinois within the upper Midwest severe weather corridor, making it vulnerable to tornadoes, large hail, and straight-line winds from spring through early fall. The county has recorded more than 22 tornado events since modern records began, with recent examples including two tornadoes west and northwest of Freeport in August 2017 (EF-0 and EF-1) and a high-end EF2 multi-vortex tornado in April 2026 that tracked 8.5 miles through Lena at 130 mph peak winds, destroying roofs and collapsing exterior walls on Grove Street. Hail events are frequent and can reach destructive sizes - baseball-size hail (2.75 inches) was recorded near Davis and Lena in March 2026, and tea-cup-size hail (3.0 inches) was reported west of Dakota in April 2026 - while derechos and straight-line wind gusts of 70+ mph add a separate damage pathway that can strike with little localized warning. The county also faces significant winter storm exposure including heavy snow and ice accumulation from Great Lakes-influenced systems, and recurrent flash and river flooding driven by intense rainfall over the relatively flat agricultural landscape.