Natural hazards · Gilson

Gilson, IL natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Gilson comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is high for a U.S. community. 1 federal disaster brought FEMA money into town.

FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025 · OpenFEMA claims, aid & declarations

Expected damage

How exposed is Gilson?

High

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Gilson to be higher than in 60% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and strong winds.

Inland flooding33%Strong wind16%Cold waves13%Drought11%Tornadoes10%Heat waves6%Everything else11%

By hazard

What Gilson faces

Each hazard’s share of the damage FEMA expects here, and how that compares with the rest of the country.

Inland flooding

33% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 66% of U.S. places

Recorded about once a year in the area

Strong wind

16% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 98% of U.S. places

Recorded about 6 times a year in the area

Cold waves

13% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 62% of U.S. places

Recorded about 6 times a year in the area

Drought

11% of expected damage

Recorded about 9 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

10% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 89% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 5 years in the area

Heat waves

6% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 66% of U.S. places

Recorded about 6 times a year in the area

Lower here

HurricanesIce stormsWinter weatherWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesLightning

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity

Flood risk changes street by street. Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.

Flood insurance claims

Does Gilson flood?

FEMA's records show no paid flood insurance claims in Gilson.

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

No community discount. Gilson isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Knox County.

Disasters that hit Gilson

1 federal disaster brought FEMA money here

Disasters the President declared that paid out in Gilson itself: aid to households, or repair grants to Gilson.

Brought FEMA money into GilsonDeclared for Knox County only

2013

Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding

3 households applied for aid $7K aid approved

Knox County has had 9 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often floods and winter storms.

About these numbers

How to read this page

An average, not a forecastFEMA’s National Risk Index estimates the damage 18 kinds of natural hazards cause in a typical year, from decades of records and models. A quiet decade can follow a bad year.

Compared by rate“Higher than N%” compares yearly damage as a share of what’s here, so a big city isn’t rated riskier just for having more buildings. Gilson is smaller than a census tract, so it shares the figures of the tract around its center.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Gilson’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to Gilson. FEMA’s model follows property values, so a place that recently lost many homes can rate lower than it feels.

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025); OpenFEMA: NFIP redacted claims, multiple-loss properties, community status book and residential penetration rates, housing assistance (owners and renters), public assistance funded projects, hazard mitigation properties and disaster declarations. Census tracts: U.S. Census Bureau.

Gilson, IL natural hazards

How exposed is Gilson?

What Gilson faces

Inland flooding

Strong wind

Cold waves

Drought

Tornadoes

Heat waves

Lower here

Not a risk here

Does Gilson flood?

1 federal disaster brought FEMA money here

Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding

How to read this page

Where to, neighbor?

Matches

Nearby