208 flood insurance claims·$1.4M paid·2 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 Macon 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 of Macon County, Illinois. Over the last 30 years, NOAA records show 42 flash flood events compared to 3 general flood events. Recent incidents illustrate this pattern, such as thunderstorms on August 12, 2025, that produced excessive rainfall rates causing isolated flash flooding in Decatur. Similarly, storms on May 19, 2024, generated flash flooding and hail near Long Creek, while earlier events on July 19, 2025, caused minor street flooding in Decatur.
National Flood Insurance Program records indicate that claims span multiple zones with varying severity. Zone A accounts for the highest claim volume at 112 claims, with an average payout of $9,717 and an average recorded water depth of 5 inches. Properties in Zone X_UNSHADED recorded the highest average payout at $21,307 and an average water depth of 10 inches across 21 claims. Meanwhile, Zone X recorded 18 claims with an average payout of $13,207 and an average water depth of 4 inches, Zone UNKNOWN recorded 38 claims averaging $4,011 with an average depth of 2 inches, and Zone X_SHADED recorded 19 claims averaging $4,976 with an average depth of 1 inch.
Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the closest attention to properties located in Zone A and unshaded Zone X areas, where historical claims demonstrate both frequent occurrences and significant financial impact from localized heavy rainfall and flash flooding.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
26% of Macon County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
152 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 4 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 1983, with 43 claims and $163,166 paid.
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.
16 NOAA storm reports from Macon County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Illinois flood stories →
11 federal disaster declarations since 1974, 2 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Jun 29, 2023 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Nov 30, 2006 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes And Flooding | Apr 21, 2002 |
| Winter Storm 1/1/99 | Jan 1, 1999 |
| Severe Storms And Tornadoes | Apr 18, 1996 |
| Severe Storms & Flooding | Apr 30, 1979 |
| Severe Storms & Flooding | Jun 10, 1974 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
45 since 1996: 42 flash floods and 3 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jul 19, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 12, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 19, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Sep 4, 2022 | — |
| Flash Flood | Sep 3, 2022 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 3, 2022 | — |
| Flood | Aug 3, 2022 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 2, 2022 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Jul 19, 2025. Slow-moving thunderstorms dropped very heavy rainfall across southern Clay County from mid-morning through mid-afternoon of July 19th. Rainfall amounts of 6-8 inches were common along and south of US-50, resulting in significant flash flooding from Xenia to Flora. Further north, rainfall of 3-4 inches caused minor street flooding in parts of Decatur in Macon County.
Flash Flood · Aug 12, 2025. A pre-frontal trough interacting with a seasonably warm and moist airmass triggered a couple bands of thunderstorms across central Illinois during the afternoon and evening of August 12th. One of the strongest cells produced excessive rainfall rates and caused isolated flash flooding in Decatur in Macon County.
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 · Sep 4, 2022. Several waves of low pressure tracking along a nearly stationary frontal boundary draped along I-70 triggered a band of showers and thunderstorms across central Illinois during the afternoon of September 4th. The band developed along I-72 and produced rainfall of 1.50 to 2.50. With thunderstorms the night before already saturating the ground, this additional rainfall led to isolated flash flooding across parts o…
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 Macon 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.