18 flood insurance claims·$208,531 paid·3 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 Clark 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 historical flood profile of Clark County, Illinois, accounting for 76 percent of all recorded flood events over the last 30 years according to the NOAA Storm Events Database.
Historical events illustrate these risks across the region. On January 11, 2020, heavy rainfall totals of 3 to 6 inches accumulated across a corridor that included Clark County as low-pressure waves tracked along a stationary frontal boundary. Earlier, on May 29, 2019, training thunderstorm cells dropped 2 to 3 inches of rainfall in a short period of time, leading to flash flooding. Another significant multi-day event occurred on May 4, 2017, following 6-day rainfall totals ranging from 4 to 7 inches across the region.
Property owners should note that flood risks extend beyond designated high-risk areas. National Flood Insurance Program records show claims filed in both moderate-to-low risk and high-risk zones. Properties in Zone X recorded 12 claims with an average payout of $14,146 and an average recorded water depth of 14 inches. Meanwhile, properties in Zone A accounted for 6 claims with an average payout of $10,585 and an average recorded water depth of 9 inches. Homeowners, journalists, and real estate agents should pay close attention to properties in both Zone X and Zone A given these documented losses.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
In flood insurance claims here that reported a flood depth, the average was 12 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 2008, with 6 claims and $26,213 paid, the year of Severe Storms 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.
12 NOAA storm reports from Clark County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Illinois flood stories →
10 federal disaster declarations since 1974, 3 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Jun 29, 2023 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Apr 16, 2013 |
| Severe Winter Storm And Snowstorm | Jan 31, 2011 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Jun 1, 2008 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes And Flooding | Apr 21, 2002 |
| Severe Storms & Flooding | Feb 23, 1985 |
| Severe Storms & Flooding | Jun 10, 1974 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
41 since 1996: 31 flash floods and 10 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | Jan 11, 2020 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 29, 2019 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 11, 2018 | — |
| Flood | Apr 29, 2017 | — |
| Flash Flood | Apr 29, 2017 | — |
| Flood | May 4, 2017 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 4, 2017 | — |
| Flood | May 1, 2017 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · Jan 11, 2020. Several waves of low pressure tracking along a nearly stationary frontal boundary brought periods of locally heavy rainfall to central Illinois on January 10th and 11th. The front gradually shifted eastward into the Ohio River Valley and brought an end to the rain by the evening of January 11th. Storm total rainfall was heaviest in a corridor including Shelby, Moultrie, Douglas, Coles, Cumberland, Effingham, and…
Flash Flood · May 29, 2019. Several clusters of thunderstorms developed along a nearly stationary frontal boundary draped across central Illinois during the late afternoon and evening of May 29th. Four landspout type tornadoes touched down beneath developing cells across portions of Christian and Macon counties. Other storms produced isolated wind damage and hail as large as quarters. In addition, numerous cells training over the same loc…
Flash Flood · Jun 11, 2018. A series of weak impulses interacted with a stationary frontal boundary extending from northeast Missouri to southwest Indiana to produce several rounds of thunderstorms across south-central Illinois from the evening of June 11th into the morning of June 12th. The strongest cells produced damaging wind gusts of around 60mph and hail as large as golf balls during the evening of June 11th. In addition, excessive r…
Flood · Apr 29, 2017. Heavy rainfall impacted central and southeast Illinois from April 29th into April 30th...creating flash flooding, which led to widespread areal flooding. Periods of thunderstorms with very high rainfall rates dropped 2.00 to 6.50 inches of rain across much of central and southeast Illinois from April 29th into early on May 1st. This rainfall, occurring on top of already saturated soils, created flash flooding in a…
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 Clark 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.