Natural hazards · Northfield

Northfield, IL natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Northfield comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is moderate for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 333 claims here since 1978.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Northfield?

Moderate

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Northfield to be higher than in 51% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and cold waves.

Inland flooding57%Cold waves21%Tornadoes12%Heat waves6%Everything else3%

By hazard

What Northfield faces

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

Inland flooding

57% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 73% of U.S. places

Recorded about 6 times a year in the area

Cold waves

21% of expected damage

Well below average · higher than 22% of U.S. places

Recorded about 4 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

12% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 75% of U.S. places

Heat waves

6% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 77% of U.S. places

Recorded about 3 times a year in the area

Lower here

HurricanesHailIce stormsWinter weatherWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesStrong windLightningDrought

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 Northfield flood?

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

333paid claims since 1978

$7.4Mpaid to owners

0homes flooded more than once

19782026

Biggest named events

Hurricane Ike: 58 claims, $3.7M
Mid-spring storms: 34 claims, $903K

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Cook County.

Disasters that hit Northfield

Federal disasters declared here

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

Brought FEMA money into NorthfieldDeclared for Cook County only

Cook County has had 21 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often floods and severe storms.

Around Northfield

Northfield and the towns around it

Very lowLowModerateHighVery high

West Deerfieldmostly inland floodingHigh

Wheelingmostly inland floodingHigh

Glenviewmostly inland floodingHigh

Des Plainesmostly inland floodingModerate

Northbrookmostly inland floodingModerate

Wheelingmostly inland floodingModerate

Northfieldmostly inland floodingModerate

New Triermostly inland floodingModerate

Nilesmostly inland floodingModerate

Morainemostly inland floodingLow

Glencoemostly inland floodingVery low

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. Northfield covers 18 census tracts, combined by population.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Northfield’s own flood-insurance community (here, the census tracts inside it); household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Township of Northfield. 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 Northfield total about $57.8M 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.