2 flood insurance claims·$12,611 paid·1 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 Cumberland 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 risk profile in Cumberland County, Illinois, accounting for 29 out of 38 recorded flood events over the last 30 years alongside 9 general flood events.
Recent history illustrates this pattern. On August 9, 2022, thunderstorms fueled by a slow-moving cold front produced rainfall rates exceeding 2 inches per hour near the I-70 corridor, leading to isolated flash flooding. Earlier, on January 11, 2020, waves of low pressure along a stationary front dropped 3 to 6 inches of rain across a heavy rainfall corridor that included Cumberland County, causing widespread flooding.
NFIP claim records show minimal historical payouts across zones, consisting of a single claim in Zone A with an average payout of $5,726 and an average recorded water depth of 1 inch, and a single claim in Zone X with an average payout of $6,885 and an average recorded water depth of 5 inches. Homeowners and real estate agents should pay the closest attention to properties situated within designated flood hazard zones, particularly Zone A locations where riverine overflow and intense rainfall accumulation present direct flood exposure.
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 3 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.
16 NOAA storm reports from Cumberland County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Illinois flood stories →
9 federal disaster declarations since 1974, 1 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Jun 29, 2023 |
| 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 And Flooding | Apr 28, 1996 |
| Severe Storms & Flooding | Jun 10, 1974 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
38 since 1996: 29 flash floods and 9 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Aug 9, 2022 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 2, 2022 | — |
| Flood | Jan 11, 2020 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 29, 2019 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 12, 2018 | — |
| Flood | Apr 29, 2017 | — |
| Flash Flood | Apr 29, 2017 | — |
| Flood | May 4, 2017 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Aug 9, 2022. A cluster of thunderstorms developed in the evening near the I-70 corridor ahead of a slow moving cold front. These thunderstorms produced heavy rain and isolated flash flooding across southeast Illinois, with some locations observing rainfall rates that exceeded 2 inches per hour. An additional cluster of thunderstorms moved across the same areas early on the morning of August 9th, producing more flooding.
Flash Flood · Aug 2, 2022. A persistent frontal boundary draped across central Illinois continued to be the focus for strong to severe thunderstorm development during the morning of August 2nd. A low-level jet interacting with the boundary triggered the first cluster of storms across portions of Sangamon and Logan counties during the pre-dawn hours, with additional cells forming from Galesburg to near Lawrenceville as the morning progresse…
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…
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 Cumberland 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.