242 flood insurance claims·$1.6M paid·6 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 Morgan 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 in Morgan County, Illinois, supported by 32 recorded flash flood events alongside 15 general flood events over the last 30 years.
Recent history demonstrates this hazard, such as the June 17, 2022 event when a Mesoscale Convective System tracked east-southeastward along a stationary frontal boundary, producing significant wind damage and flash flooding. Another notable event occurred on June 25, 2021, when a series of disturbances tracking along a stationary boundary brought heavy rainfall that heavily impacted southern portions of Morgan County.
Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the most attention to properties in unmapped or poorly documented areas as well as designated high-risk flood zones. FEMA records show the highest claim volume in Morgan County occurred in Zone UNKNOWN with 114 claims averaging 2 inches of recorded water depth and $2,653 in payouts, closely followed by Zone A with 111 claims averaging an average of 5 inches of recorded water depth and $9,154 in payouts. Properties in Zone X also experienced severe losses, recording 6 claims with an average of 3 inches of recorded water depth and an average payout of $133,349.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
9% of Morgan County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
122 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 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.
The worst year was 1982, with 63 claims and $120,275 paid, the year of Severe Storms, Tornadoes & 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.
21 NOAA storm reports from Morgan County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Illinois flood stories →
17 federal disaster declarations since 1973, 6 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Jun 29, 2023 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, And Tornadoes | Dec 10, 2021 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Feb 24, 2019 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Apr 16, 2013 |
| Severe Winter Storm And Snowstorm | Jan 31, 2011 |
| Tornadoes And Severe Storms | Mar 11, 2006 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes And Flooding | Apr 21, 2002 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
47 since 1996: 32 flash floods and 15 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Aug 29, 2022 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 17, 2022 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 25, 2021 | — |
| Flood | May 16, 2020 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 16, 2020 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 22, 2019 | — |
| Flood | May 1, 2019 | — |
| Flood | Apr 29, 2017 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Aug 29, 2022. Numerous clusters of strong thunderstorms developed along an outflow boundary and ahead of a slowly approaching cold front during the evening of August 29th. Some of the thunderstorm cells merged and produced damaging wind gusts in excess of 60mph, particularly across Vermilion County. Excessive rainfall rates led to scattered flash flooding across central Illinois as well.
Flash Flood · Jun 17, 2022. A strong nocturnal low-level jet interacting with a nearly stationary frontal boundary triggered a Mesoscale Convective System (MCS) over northern Missouri during the pre-dawn hours of June 17th. The large thunderstorm cluster tracked east-southeastward along the boundary, producing significant wind damage and flash flooding. The storms were focused along and southeast of a Rushville...to Springfield...to Shelby…
Flash Flood · Jun 25, 2021. A series of disturbances tracking along a nearly stationary frontal boundary resulted in two periods of heavy rainfall across parts of central Illinois on June 25th and June 26th. The hardest hit areas were across southern McLean County into far northern Logan County, as well as across southern portions of Scott and Morgan counties. The first wave of heavy rain began around 7pm CDT June 25th and persisted until…
Flood · May 16, 2020. Thunderstorms producing copious amounts of rainfall impacted the southern sections of Morgan and Sangamon counties during the afternoon of May 16th. While these storms pushed further east and only scattered lighter showers persisted, many area creeks and streams continued to rise through the evening of May 16th into the morning of May 17th. As a result, widespread areal flooding occurred from near Murrayville in…
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 Morgan 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.