209 flood insurance claims·$1.2M 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 Douglas 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 severe summer thunderstorms dominates the flood profile of Douglas County, accounting for 26 of the 35 recorded flood events over the past 30 years alongside 9 broader riverine flood events. Stationary frontal boundaries frequently produce heavy rainfall totals ranging from 3 to 6 inches, resulting in localized inundation. For instance, slow-moving storms dropped 3 to 4 inches of rain to cause flash flooding in Atwood on August 26, 2021, while a heavy rain corridor brought 3 to 6 inches across the county on January 11, 2020. Similar torrential downpours caused localized flash flooding in parts of the county on May 19, 2024, and June 3, 2020.
National Flood Insurance Program records indicate that high-risk Zone A properties should pay the most attention, accounting for 173 total claims with an average payout of $6,622 and an average recorded water depth of 7 inches. However, property owners outside standard high-risk areas also face severe localized risks; Zone X properties recorded 12 claims with a notably higher average water depth of 27 inches and an average payout of $15,763, while unshaded Zone X properties recorded 5 claims with an average water depth of 1 inch and an average payout of $23,064.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
5% of Douglas County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
183 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 8 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 1996, with 29 claims and $136,638 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.
14 NOAA storm reports from Douglas County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Illinois flood stories →
13 federal disaster declarations since 1990, 1 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Jun 29, 2023 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, And Tornadoes | Nov 17, 2013 |
| 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 |
| Winter Storm 1/1/99 | Jan 1, 1999 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
35 since 1996: 26 flash floods and 9 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | May 19, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 26, 2021 | — |
| Flood | Jan 11, 2020 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 3, 2020 | — |
| Flood | Apr 29, 2017 | — |
| Flash Flood | Apr 29, 2017 | — |
| Flood | May 4, 2017 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 4, 2017 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · May 19, 2024. An upper-level disturbance interacting with a stationary frontal boundary draped across central Illinois triggered clusters of strong to severe thunderstorms during the afternoon and evening of May 19th. Some of the cells produced flash flooding and hail as large as ping pong balls near Long Creek in Macon County, while others caused isolated flash flooding in parts of rural Douglas County.
Flash Flood · Aug 26, 2021. Numerous clusters of thunderstorms developed along previous outflow boundaries across central Illinois during the afternoon and evening of August 26th. One of the cells produced wind gusts in excess of 60 mph, which downed several large trees in Pana in Christian County. Other storms dropped as much as 3 to 4 inches of rain, causing flash flooding in the town of Atwood in Douglas County.
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 · Jun 3, 2020. A stationary frontal boundary extending from southern Lake Michigan to northern Missouri triggered clusters of strong to severe thunderstorms across portions of central Illinois during the evening of June 3rd into the pre-dawn hours of June 4th. Some of the cells produced damaging wind gusts of around 60mph, hail as large as quarters, and torrential downpours. Three to four inches of rain was reported in a few s…
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 Douglas 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.