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EF1 tornado in Ford County, Illinois

Tornado April 17, 2026 · Ford County, Illinois

EF1
Rating
4.8 mi
Path length
100 yd
Path width
EF0EF1EF2EF3EF4EF5Unrated

The path drawn at its surveyed width of 100 yards (0.06 mi) — zoom in and the swath grows to true scale. Other tornadoes recorded nearby that day are shown faint.

What EF1 means. On the Enhanced Fujita scale, EF1 is moderate damage: roofs badly stripped, mobile homes pushed off foundations or overturned, windows broken, consistent with estimated gusts of 86–110 mph. The rating comes from a survey of the worst damage after the storm, not from a wind measurement, so it says as much about what the tornado hit as about how strong it was.

What the National Weather Service wrote

An EF-1 tornado touched down on the west side of Gibson City, producing significant roofing damage to several buildings along 8th Street. The tornado continued ENE for several miles, producing primarily tree damage before lifting approximately three miles ENE of Gibson City.

The wider storm

A line of severe thunderstorms moved across all of northern Illinois during the evening of April 17th producing several tornadoes and wind damage. Large hail occurred across parts of northwest Illinois and flooding occurred across parts of northeast Illinois.

Began near Gibson City (40.4648, -88.3989).

Other tornadoes from the same storm system

9 more tornadoes the National Weather Service filed under this storm episode.

EF1 Livingston CountyEF1 Winnebago CountyEF1 Winnebago CountyEF1 La Salle CountyEF1 Iroquois CountyEF1 Ford CountyEF0 Kankakee CountyEF0 Kankakee CountyEFU Winnebago County

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 1333721. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

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