1,869 flood insurance claims·$22.4M paid·9 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 Jersey 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.
River overflow and flash flooding from summer thunderstorms dominate the flood risk in Jersey County, IL, which recorded 19 flood events and 16 flash flood events, including 2 flash flood deaths, over the last 30 years.
Historical events illustrate these hazards. In June 2019, record river levels in the top five at numerous sites occurred following a snowy winter and heavy spring and early summer rains across the Missouri and Mississippi River basins. Earlier, on August 12, 2019, heavy rainfall rates from storms training over the same locations for over five hours caused flash flooding. Another significant multi-day event dropped 6 to 12 inches of rain across the region from December 26 to December 28, 2015.
Properties in Zone A require the most attention, accounting for 1,531 National Flood Insurance Program claims with an average payout of $14,299 and an average recorded water depth of 10 inches. Properties in zones with higher average payouts, such as Zone X_SHADED with an average payout of $45,694 across 30 claims (average water depth of 5 inches) and Zone X with an average payout of $30,045 across 27 claims (average water depth of 7 inches), should also remain vigilant.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
4% of Jersey County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
1,588 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 9 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 1993, with 417 claims and $8.0M paid, the year of Severe Storms & 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.
5 NOAA storm reports from Jersey County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Illinois flood stories →
20 federal disaster declarations since 1969, 9 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, And Tornadoes | Dec 10, 2021 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Feb 24, 2019 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Jun 1, 2008 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Nov 30, 2006 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes And Flooding | Apr 21, 2002 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | May 15, 1995 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Apr 9, 1994 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
35 since 1996: 16 flash floods and 19 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Aug 12, 2019 | — |
| Flood | Jun 2, 2019 | — |
| Flash Flood | Dec 26, 2015 | — · 1 killed |
| Flash Flood | Oct 2, 2014 | — |
| Flood | Apr 19, 2013 | $5,000 |
| Flood | Apr 14, 2013 | $5,000 |
| Flood | May 1, 2013 | $2,000 |
| Flood | Jun 1, 2013 | $1,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Aug 12, 2019. Elevated convection developed in response to low level moisture convergence just north of a slowly retreating warm front. With very high precipitable water values in excess of 2 inches, this created very heavy rainfall rates as the storms trained over the same locations for over 5 hours. This caused flash flooding in a number of locations.
Flood · Jun 2, 2019. After a very snowy winter across the upper Midwest and numerous rounds of heavy rain across the Missouri and Mississippi River basins through the spring and early summer months, the rivers rose to record levels. The flooding was not quite as high as 1993, but a number of sites had record river levels in the top 5.
Flash Flood · Dec 26, 2015. A prolonged period of rainfall occurred from the early morning hours of December 26th to the evening of December 28th. The heaviest rainfall occurred in a 50 to 75 mile wide swath from southwest Missouri through the Greater St. Louis Metropolitan Area and into central Illinois. Three day rainfall totals within this swath ranged from 6 to 12 inches, with lighter amounts extending both northwest and southeast to t…
Flash Flood · Oct 2, 2014. Additional severe storms developed during the late morning through evening hours of Oct. 2nd. There were several reports of flash flooding, damaging winds and hail.
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 Jersey 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.