According to the National Weather Service report on the April 9, 2015, tornadoes, the tornado that tracked through Fairdale was rated EF-4 on the Enhanced Fujita scale. This would be the first EF-4 tornado in April since 1981 for Illinois and only the 33rd in Illinois history, regardless of month, since reliable records began in 1950.
According to the NWS Storm Prediction Center database, only 33 F/EF-4 tornadoes have struck Illinois since 1950. Even more rare, only 8 have hit Illinois in April. Of those eight in April, six struck in the 1960s, one in 1981, and one in 2015:
- 2 on April 17, 1963 (Olivet tornado)
- 1 on April 11, 1965 (Palm Sunday outbreak)
- 3 on April 21, 1967 (Oak Lawn tornado outbreak)
- 1 on April 3, 1981 (Madison County)
- 1 on April 9, 2015
Here are all the F/EF-4 tracks for Illinois from 1950-2014, from the MRCC tornado tracker tool. Unfortunately, we cannot screen out just the April events at this time. While this is a screenshot of the tool, the actual tool allows you to zoom in and out. If you point to a track then you get a pop up window with the details of that track. Check out the tornado tracker tool – it’s free.
I lost my home 4/3/1981 in a F4 tornado in Granite City, IL
I was an Administrative assistant to Coordinator of Madison County, IL. Emergency services and Disaster Agency.