142 flood insurance claims·$730,450 paid·4 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 Lee 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 Lee County, Illinois, accounting for 18 recorded events compared to 13 standard floods over the last 30 years.
Severe storms and heavy rainfall have repeatedly impacted the region, as demonstrated by scattered thunderstorms on May 14, 2020, and subsequent localized flash flooding driven by storms on June 27, 2020. Wider regional storm systems, such as the thunderstorms on August 18, 2025, have also produced torrential rainfall and flash flooding across northern Illinois.
Property owners and real estate agents should pay the most attention to high-risk areas. FEMA claims data shows that properties in Zone A experienced the highest impacts, averaging 10 inches of recorded water depth with average payouts of $10,113 across 59 claims. Additionally, properties categorized under Zone UNKNOWN filed 65 claims with an average payout of $4,192 and an average recorded water depth of 2 inches, while Zone X properties recorded 18 claims with an average payout of $9,275 and an average water depth of 2 inches.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
Less than 1% of Lee County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
59 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 5 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 1985, with 26 claims and $71,604 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 Lee County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Illinois flood stories →
10 federal disaster declarations since 1973, 4 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Feb 24, 2019 |
| Severe Winter Storm And Snowstorm | Jan 31, 2011 |
| Snow | Nov 30, 2006 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Severe Storms & Flooding | Feb 23, 1985 |
| Blizzards & Snowstorms | Jan 16, 1979 |
| Severe Storms & Flooding | Jun 10, 1974 |
| Severe Storms & Flooding | Apr 26, 1973 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
31 since 1996: 18 flash floods and 13 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Aug 18, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 27, 2020 | — |
| Flood | Jun 27, 2020 | — |
| Flood | Jan 21, 2020 | — |
| Flood | May 14, 2020 | — |
| Flood | May 30, 2019 | — |
| Flood | Mar 6, 2019 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 29, 2016 | $2,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Aug 18, 2025. During the afternoon and evening of the 18th, a few rounds of thunderstorms brought torrential rainfall to much of northern Illinois resulting in flash flooding. One particularly strong storm also produced damaging winds in DeKalb County. Initial reports estimate $8.8 million in flood damages around northern and northeast Illinois, and around $2.5 million in the city of Chicago alone.
Flash Flood · Jun 27, 2020. Scattered thunderstorms moved across portions of northeast Illinois during the afternoon of June 27th producing localized flash flooding.
Flood · Jun 27, 2020. Scattered thunderstorms moved across portions of northeast Illinois during the afternoon of June 27th producing localized flash flooding.
Flood · Jan 21, 2020. Flooding occurred along portions of the Rock River due to an ice jam.
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 Lee 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.