TownTapestry
Sign inJoin
GorhamGood morning
Natural hazards · Gorham

Gorham, IL natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Gorham comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is very high for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 2 claims here since 2001. 2 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

How exposed is Gorham?

87
Very high
vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Gorham to be higher than in 87% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and earthquakes.

Inland flooding40%Earthquakes31%Strong wind9%Cold waves7%Everything else12%
By hazard

What Gorham faces

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

Inland flooding

40% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 89% of U.S. places
Recorded about 6 times a year in the area

Earthquakes

31% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 88% of U.S. places

Strong wind

9% of expected damage
Well above average · among the top 1% of U.S. places
Recorded about 4 times a year in the area

Cold waves

7% of expected damage
Below average · higher than 46% of U.S. places
Recorded about once a year in the area

Lower here

HurricanesTornadoesHailIce stormsWinter weatherHeat wavesWildfireLandslidesLightningDrought

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 Gorham flood?

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Gorham, from FEMA’s records.

2paid claims since 2001
$5Kpaid to owners
0homes flooded more than once
20012026

Biggest named events

  • Early winter storms: 1 claim, $985
of homes in flood zones
are insured
of all homes
are insured
No community discount. Gorham isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Jackson County.
Disasters that hit Gorham

2 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into GorhamDeclared for Jackson County only
2019

Severe Storms and Flooding

$12K to the Village of Gorham for repairs
2011

Severe Storms and Flooding

7 households applied for aid $1K aid approved $1K to the Village of Gorham for repairs
Jackson County has had 13 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often floods and severe storms.
Around Gorham

Gorham and the towns around it

Sand Ridge: Very high, mostly inland floodingFountain Bluff: Very high, mostly inland floodingLevan: High, mostly earthquakesMurphysboro: Very high, mostly earthquakesGrand Tower: Very high, mostly inland floodingDegognia: Very high, mostly inland floodingKinkaid: Very high, mostly inland floodingGorham: Very high, mostly inland flooding GorhamSand RidgeFountain Bluff
Very lowLowModerateHighVery high
Gorhammostly inland floodingVery high
Sand Ridgemostly inland floodingVery high
Fountain Bluffmostly inland floodingVery high
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. Gorham 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 Gorham’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Village of Gorham. 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.

The coffee’s on

Where to, neighbor?

You’re in Gorham, ILView boundary

Nearby

All towns & citiesExplore the map

Local begins with a boundary.

See what belongs to your selected town.

Loading boundary…

Gorham is your selected town. The feed includes posts assigned to this town, not a distance radius or ZIP code.

Neighborhoods narrow the feed further, while townwide announcements, events, and issues remain visible.

Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/18 · 2025-01-01
Open detailed map