Moultrie County

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within Moultrie County: 0.
2. Weak tornadoes were under-recorded before Doppler radar coverage became national in the early 1990s, so earlier decades read low. Ratings use the Fujita scale before February 2007 and the Enhanced Fujita scale after.

Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, 1950 to 2025.

Smoke overhead

1. A smoke day is a date on which a smoke plume traced by NOAA Hazard Mapping System analysts from satellite imagery covered this place's point (the county's population centre or the city centre). Counts here are of medium or heavy smoke. Since 2018 analysts have often drawn light smoke as one area over most of the continent, so light-smoke counts are not comparable from year to year. The plumes show smoke anywhere in the air above, not air quality at the ground, and smoke hidden by cloud is missed.

NOAA Hazard Mapping System smoke analysis, 2011 to 2026, retrieved October 30, 2026.

Claims by ZIP code

This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).

OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, refreshed August 4, 2026. NOAA Storm Events through 2026.

1. The Palmer Drought Severity Index is computed by NOAA each month from the county's average temperature and precipitation, relative to the county's own climate. Zero is normal; -3 or lower is severe drought and -4 or lower extreme drought. It describes the long-term balance of moisture, not water supply or crop losses.

NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county Palmer Drought Severity Index, 1895 to September 2026, issued October 6, 2026.

1. Earthquakes of magnitude 2.5 or more in the USGS Comprehensive Catalog since 1900. Within 50 miles means the epicentre lies within 50 miles of the county boundary (or inside the county).
2. Small earthquakes were under-recorded before the modern seismic networks of the 1970s and are still missed in remote areas, so early decades read low. Magnitudes are as the catalogue reports them and mix scales (moment, local and body-wave).

USGS ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog, 1900 to present, retrieved October 30, 2026.

More event types since 1996

Costliest events since 1996

1. Apr 7, 1998Hail$7.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A severe thunderstorm dropped large amounts of hail up to two inches in diameter over Moultrie County. Two police cars were damaged severely. In Bethany, many windows and windshields were smashed by the hail, as well as, considerable roof damage. No injuries were reported. Damage was estimated between 6 and 7 million dollars.

2. Jul 19, 2010Thunderstorm Wind$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Downburst winds caused significant damage across parts of Moultrie County from near Kirksville eastward through Sullivan. Crops and numerous large trees were damaged along this path just southwest and south of Sullivan. In the town of Sullivan itself, structural damage occurred to 4 buildings along the town square. The roof and facade of one building were blown onto the street below, crushing a car. The roof of a hotel on the south side of town was blown off...with pieces of it carried nearly 200 yards away.

3. Nov 17, 2013Tornado$860,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A tornado touched down in an open field about 3 miles NE of Lovington at 12:30 PM CST, then tracked northeastward and crossed into Douglas County about 5 miles north of Arthur at 12:37 PM CST. Major roof damage occurred to 8 homes, while 1 garage was destroyed and 17 outbuildings were severely damaged. Numerous trees and power poles were snapped.

4. Dec 27, 2015Flood$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   An extended period of heavy rain during the late evening of December 26th in Moultrie County combined with an already saturated ground to produce flash flooding. Rainfall amounts ranged from 4.00 to 5.50 inches in less than six hours. Most rural roads and state highways were flooded and impassable. Bethany, Lovington and Sullivan were the most impacted with city streets inundated and basements flooded. The flooding continued through all of December 27th. Additional rainfall of 1.50 to 2.00 from December 28th into the 29th aggravated the flooding situation significantly. Every rural road and most state highways were flooded for nearly four days. The flood water finally subsided by…

5. May 15, 2018Thunderstorm Wind$350,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Roofs were ripped off several houses, trees were blown down, and a machine shed was knocked down on the southeast side of Sullivan.

6. Feb 1, 2011Winter Storm, Moultrie$200,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Weather observers across Moultrie County measured 1 to 2 inches of sleet along with one quarter to one half an inch of ice. Snow-covered and icy roads resulted in numerous traffic accidents.

7. Jan 13, 2005Flash Flood$168,000
8. May 15, 2018Thunderstorm Wind$125,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Numerous tree limbs, power poles, and power lines were blown down between Bethany and Sullivan.

9. Apr 7, 1998Tornado$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A tornado touched down 2 miles south of Cadwell and travelled to the northeast. In Moultrie County it either damaged or destroyed 9 homes, as well as, numerous barns, sheds, silos, and outbuildings. One double-wide mobile home was blown from its foundation. Four people were inside at the time. Three sustained minor injuries while one sustained serious injuries, including a broken back and leg after being thrown 200 yards by the tornado. Another home nearby was moved 3 feet off its foundation. When the tornado moved into Douglas County, it either damaged or destroyed 20 homes, 6 barns, and numerous other outbuildings. Also, 69 power poles were knocked down by the tornado in both…

10. Jun 1, 1999Thunderstorm Wind$75,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    In Sullivan, numerous trees, tree limbs and power lines were blown down. One tree fell onto a house causing minor damage. Five miles northeast of Lovington, several barns, outbuildings, and a garage were destroyed. Two homes sustained minor damage. Damage in this area was estimated around $75,000. Eight miles northeast of Lovington, several trees were blown down across US Route 36.

1. Storm Events records before 1996 cover only tornadoes, thunderstorm wind and hail. Damage figures are as reported by the National Weather Service at the time, not adjusted for inflation.

NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, 1950 to 2026, issued October 26, 2026.

All-time high

111°FJul 14, 1936

All-time low

−26°FJan 24, 1915

Warmest night

82°F3 times, most recently Aug 5, 2002

Coldest day

−8°FDec 22, 1989

Wettest day

5.52 inJun 27, 1957

Snowiest day

14.0 inJan 13, 1927

Hottest year

1998mean 57.3°F

Coldest year

2014mean 49.5°F

Wettest year

195057.63 in

Driest year

195424.20 in

Snowiest season

46.0 in1983-84

Station Windsor (USC00119354), 690 ft elevation, 12.9 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1904 to October 27, 2026; 92.7% of days in the last 30 years are complete. Records at a single station can differ from a city’s official threaded record, which may combine several stations.

NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network Daily.

This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).

OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries, retrieved October 30, 2026. Statewide declarations are not listed.

Neighbouring counties

• Tornadoes NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, through 2025.
• Tropical cyclones NOAA National Hurricane Center HURDAT2 (Atlantic; Northeast and Central Pacific), through 2025.
• Wildfire USGS/USFS Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity, through 2026.
• Storm events NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, through 2026.
• Flood insurance OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, refreshed August 4, 2026.
• Declarations OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Weather records NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network Daily, station USC00119354.
• River crests NOAA National Weather Service, National Water Prediction Service river gauges, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Drought NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county Palmer Drought Severity Index, through September 2026.
• Smoke NOAA NESDIS Hazard Mapping System smoke analysis, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Earthquakes USGS ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog (ComCat), retrieved October 30, 2026.

Joins, thresholds and known limits are set out in the methodology. Found an error? Report it. Page built October 30, 2026.