Natural hazards · Looking Glass

Looking Glass, IL natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Looking Glass comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is high for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 7 claims here since 2011.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Looking Glass?

High

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Looking Glass to be higher than in 75% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and earthquakes.

Inland flooding44%Earthquakes21%Tornadoes9%Cold waves8%Strong wind7%Heat waves6%Everything else5%

By hazard

What Looking Glass faces

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

Inland flooding

44% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 79% of U.S. places

Recorded about once a year in the area

Earthquakes

21% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 84% of U.S. places

Tornadoes

9% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 76% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 16 years in the area

Cold waves

8% of expected damage

Well below average · higher than 19% of U.S. places

Recorded about once a year in the area

Strong wind

7% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 97% of U.S. places

Recorded about 6 times a year in the area

Heat waves

6% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 76% of U.S. places

Recorded about 11 times a year in the area

Lower here

HurricanesHailIce stormsWinter weatherWildfireLandslidesLightningDrought

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 Looking Glass flood?

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

7paid claims since 2011

$207Kpaid to owners

0homes flooded more than once

20112026

Biggest named events

Early winter storms: 2 claims, $33K
Mid-spring storms: 1 claim, $4K

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Clinton County.

Disasters that hit Looking Glass

Federal disasters declared here

None of the disasters declared for Clinton County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Looking Glass itself in FEMA’s records.

Brought FEMA money into Looking GlassDeclared for Clinton County only

Clinton County has had 5 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often floods and hurricanes.

Around Looking Glass

Looking Glass and the towns around it

Very lowLowModerateHighVery high

Venedymostly inland floodingHigh

Engelmannmostly inland floodingHigh

Looking Glassmostly inland floodingHigh

Germantownmostly inland floodingHigh

Mascoutahmostly inland floodingHigh

Sugar Creekmostly inland floodingHigh

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. Looking Glass covers 1 census tract, combined by population.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Looking Glass’s own flood-insurance community (here, the census tracts inside it); household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Township of Looking Glass. FEMA’s model follows property values, so a place that recently lost many homes can rate lower than it feels.

FEMA’s expected losses across Looking Glass total about $4.8M a year, counting buildings, people and crops.

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.