This state leads the nation for tornado reports in 2026
One state in the Midwest has led the nation so far this year in tornado reports, while some typically-active states have fallen behind.
Video shows several tornadoes touching down across Illinois on Good Friday of 2026.
After an unusually stormy spring in the state, Illinois is No. 1 in preliminary tornado reports this year, bucking the historical average.
According to data from NOAA's Storm Prediction Center (SPC) for January through April, Illinois had 119 tornado reports through the end of April, more than twice the runners-up of Mississippi, at 53, and Oklahoma, at 46.
Although West Virginia had its first tornado in nearly two years confirmed last week, it does not show up on the map, as the wind damage was not preliminarily reported as a tornado.
Which states are ahead or behind their tornado historical average?
Those numbers put Illinois at 99 tornadoes more than historical average for the January to April period. Typically, due to its size, Texas is ahead by this time of year, with 46 reports, followed by Alabama and Mississippi at 36 reports each, SPC says.
Other states ahead of average include Wisconsin, with 35 reports versus the average of 3, Oklahoma, with 46 tornado reports, compared to an average of 21. Michigan averages only one tornado during the first four months of the year, but 20 tornado reports have been filed this year so far.
Four states are considerably below normal. Texas is 22 tornadoes behind historical average for the year. Alabama and Florida are 13 reports below, and Tennessee is 12 reports below.
The strongest tornado confirmed by the National Weather Service (NWS) in 2026 was the EF4 tornado in Enid, Oklahoma, on April 23, with maximum sustained winds of 170 mph. A total of seven EF3-rated tornadoes were also surveyed in Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Michigan, Oklahoma and Texas. The Enhanced Fujita Scale is used to rate tornadoes in the United States.
Multiple tornadoes touched down in Illinois on Apr. 3, 2026. (AccuWeather)
For hail reports, Missouri, Texas, Kansas, Illinois and Iowa lead the top 5 so far this year. When switching to wind reports, Missouri, Illinois, Alabama, Mississippi and Indiana are the top states.
Why has Illinois been the tornado hotspot this year?
“The jet stream plays a large role in organizing severe weather in the spring," AccuWeather Meteorologist Alexander Duffus explains. "This year, its average position through March and April has been centered more over the Midwest, bringing more tornadoes, instead of being positioned over the southern Plains."
In 2025, the situation was different by the end of April, with Missouri in the number one position, with 91 tornado reports. Alabama had 85, with Illinois coming in third with 82 reports.
