IL

Storm restoration across Vermilion County

Vermilion County sits in east-central Illinois within a well-established severe weather corridor, recording 71 tornadoes between 1950 and 2025, including two F4 events and direct hits during the historic April 3, 1974 Super Outbreak. The county faces recurring derecho and straight-line wind threats - the July 2024 derecho snapped power poles and downed trees across Danville, and a December 1998 event brought widespread 60-to-90 mph winds. Large hail up to 2 inches is a documented seasonal hazard, and the North Fork and Middle Fork of the Vermilion River create serious flash and riverine flooding risk, with the Danville gauge cresting at a record 31.6 feet - nearly 14 feet above flood stage - in 1994. Winter storms periodically deliver ice accumulation followed by heavy snow, with a 2022 event producing up to a quarter-inch of ice across east-central Illinois before depositing 8 to 15 inches of snow through the Danville corridor.