73 flood insurance claims·$243,930 paid·6 federal flood & hurricane disasters
Share of the whole county outline, rivers and lakes included; parts FEMA hasn’t mapped count as zero.
Shaded areas are FEMA’s mapped flood hazard zones in and around Bureau County, Illinois. Zoomed out they are simplified; at street level the map switches to FEMA’s exact layer. Tap anywhere to check that spot, or search an address above.
Flash flooding from summer thunderstorms dominates the flood profile of Bureau County, which recorded 26 flash flood events alongside 5 general flood events over the last 30 years.
Recent occurrences illustrate this pattern. On July 10 and July 20, 2025, storms dropped 2 to 4.5 inches of rain across the area, producing flash flooding in Princeton and parts of Bureau County. Another storm on July 30, 2025, brought 2 to 3 inches of rainfall, resulting in flash flooding in the town of Ladd. Slower-moving storms also produced locally heavy rainfall in June 2024.
NFIP claims data shows historical payouts across various zones. Properties in Zone A experienced 32 claims with an average payout of $5,425 and an average recorded water depth of 13 inches. Zone UNKNOWN recorded 29 claims averaging $2,926 with an average water depth of 2 inches. Unshaded Zone X properties saw 6 claims averaging $4,330 with an average depth of 19 inches, while standard Zone X had 4 claims averaging $4,066 with an average depth of 2 inches. Shaded Zone X recorded 2 claims with an average payout of $16,100 and an average water depth of 1 inch. Homeowners in Zone A, unshaded Zone X, and unmapped or unknown zones should pay the most attention to flood risk due to these recorded claim histories and water depths.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
20% of Bureau County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
40 NFIP claims with a recorded rated flood zone, 1978 to date. The zone is the one FEMA used to rate that policy, which may not match today’s map. Source: OpenFEMA NFIP claims.
In flood insurance claims here that reported a flood depth, the average was 10 inches.
Drawn to scale against an 80-inch door. Even a few inches soaks flooring, the bottom of the drywall and anything plugged in near the floor.
Average of the depths reported on claims (zero and implausible values left out); FEMA’s record doesn’t say exactly where each depth was measured. Source: OpenFEMA NFIP claims.
The worst year was 2013, with 19 claims and $90,905 paid, the year of Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding.
Bar height is scaled by square root so ordinary years stay visible next to the worst one. NFIP claims by year of loss. Source: OpenFEMA.
15 NOAA storm reports from Bureau County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Illinois flood stories →
17 federal disaster declarations since 1973, 6 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Feb 24, 2019 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Apr 16, 2013 |
| Severe Winter Storm And Snowstorm | Jan 31, 2011 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Sep 13, 2008 |
| Snow | Nov 30, 2006 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Illinois Winter Snow Storms | Dec 11, 2000 |
| Winter Storm 1/1/99 | Jan 1, 1999 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
31 since 1996: 26 flash floods and 5 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jul 30, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 20, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 10, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 26, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 11, 2022 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 4, 2022 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 28, 2020 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 3, 2020 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Jul 30, 2025. On the evening of July 30th, thunderstorms produced heavy rainfall of 2 to 3 inches across Bureau County. This heavy rain led to flash flooding in the town of Ladd.
Flash Flood · Jul 20, 2025. A decaying mesoscale convective system moved into northwest Illinois, mainly along and south of Interstate 80, during the morning hours of July 20th. These showers and storms produced heavy rain with trained spotters reporting 2 to 4 inches of rain. This lead to flash flooding in part of Bureau County.
Flash Flood · Jul 10, 2025. During the evening hours of July 10th, a line of thunderstorms developed in eastern Iowa and moved into northwest Illinois. These storms produced isolated large hail and damaging wind gusts in Carroll, Jo Daviess, Henry, Bureau, and Rock Island Counties. These storms also produced heavy rain, mainly along and north of interstate 80. Rainfall amounts of 2 to 4.50 inches were reported that produced some flash floo…
Flash Flood · Jun 26, 2024. Numerous slow-moving storms occurred on the afternoon of June 25, lasting into the evening. These storms quickly became strong to severe, with multiple becoming supercells, which ended up producing locally heavy rainfall, damaging winds, large hail, and four tornadoes that were generally weak, but still capable of damage. Winds were generally 60 mph or greater with the stronger storms, with a corridor of winds gre…
National Weather Service narratives, lightly trimmed. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Every colour on the map above is a place on this drawing: where the ground sits relative to the flood FEMA plans for.
If a building in Bureau County is in a high-risk zone (A or V) and its mortgage comes from a federally regulated or insured lender, or is federally backed, flood insurance is required.
Outside those zones it is optional, and often worth having: from 2014 to 2024 nearly one-third of NFIP claims came from outside the high-risk Special Flood Hazard Area. Since Risk Rating 2.0, NFIP premiums are set for each building, so the only reliable price is a quote: FloodSmart.gov or a local agent.