Illinois’ Catastrophic Tornado Also Most Deadliest in U.S History

One of the most horrific and Catastrophic weather events happened in Illinois back in 1925 and to this day is one of the worst in American history.

Tri-State Tornado 1925

I can imagine that March 18, 1925, started like any other day across Southern Illinois, Southeast Missouri, and Southwest Indiana. Men went to work, women stayed with the children, and it was a normal day. It all changed very quickly.

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The National Weather Service created a timeline of the Tri-State Tornado. At 1:01 pm a tornado touchdown in Ellington, Missouri. the same tornado hit 3 states (Missouri, Illinois, & Indiana), 19+ communities, destroyed 219 miles of land and homes, and lasted 3 1/2 hours.

It's not only known as the deadliest tornado but the longest U.S. tornado track in history.

By 4:30 pm the destruction was in Indiana and finally stopped. In total, the tornado took 695 lives (a record for a single tornado), over 2,000 injuries, and destroyed 15,000 homes.

10 Deadliest U.S. Tornadoes

100 years later the Tri-State Tornado of 1925 is still the deadliest in U.S. history. With newer technology and warnings and alerts, we are more prepared now for weather events than back in 1925.