IL

Storm restoration across Williamson County

Williamson County sits in the far southern tip of Illinois within the NWS Paducah forecast area, where warm, humid Gulf air collides with cold continental air masses and produces some of the state's most intense severe weather. Tornadoes are a documented, recurring threat: the 1925 Tri-State F5 tornado killed 102 people in nearby West Frankfort, a 1982 F4 struck Marion killing 10, and an EF4 prompted a tornado emergency for Williamson and Saline counties in May 2025. The county also faces large-hail-producing supercells, derecho-driven straight-line winds, and Big Muddy River and Crab Orchard Creek flooding that regularly affects low-lying communities after heavy rain events. Winter storms bringing ice accumulation and occasional heavy snow are a secondary but real hazard, given the county's position at the boundary of humid continental and humid subtropical climate zones.