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Natural hazards · Palatine

Palatine, IL natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Palatine comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is low for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 98 claims here since 1978.

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

How exposed is Palatine?

38
Low
vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Palatine to be higher than in 38% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and cold waves.

Inland flooding43%Cold waves30%Tornadoes15%Heat waves8%Everything else3%
By hazard

What Palatine faces

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

Inland flooding

43% of expected damage
Above average · higher than 61% of U.S. places
Recorded about 6 times a year in the area

Cold waves

30% of expected damage
Well below average · higher than 22% of U.S. places
Recorded about 4 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

15% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 76% of U.S. places

Heat waves

8% 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 Palatine flood?

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

98paid claims since 1978
$1.1Mpaid to owners
0homes flooded more than once
19782026

Biggest named events

  • Hurricane Ike: 12 claims, $496K
  • Mid-spring storms: 1 claim, $4K
of homes in flood zones
are insured
of all homes
are insured
No community discount. Palatine 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 Palatine

Federal disasters declared here

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

Brought FEMA money into PalatineDeclared for Cook County only
Cook County has had 21 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often floods and severe storms.
Around Palatine

Palatine and the towns around it

Barrington: Very low, mostly inland floodingWheeling: Moderate, mostly inland floodingArlington Heights: Moderate, mostly inland floodingPalatine: Low, mostly inland floodingHoffman Estates: Very low, mostly cold wavesSchaumburg: Low, mostly inland floodingInverness: Low, mostly inland floodingEla: Low, mostly inland floodingRolling Meadows: Moderate, mostly inland floodingBarrington: Very low, mostly inland floodingSouth Barrington: Very low, mostly inland floodingHanover: Low, mostly cold wavesDundee: Very low, mostly inland floodingNorthfield: Moderate, mostly inland floodingVernon: Low, mostly inland floodingWheeling: High, mostly inland floodingDes Plaines: Moderate, mostly inland floodingGlenview: High, mostly inland floodingProspect Heights: Moderate, mostly inland floodingMount Prospect: Moderate, mostly inland floodingBuffalo Grove: Moderate, mostly inland floodingSchaumburg: Low, mostly inland floodingDeer Park: Low, mostly inland floodingStreamwood: Low, mostly cold wavesBarrington Hills: Moderate, mostly inland floodingElgin: Moderate, mostly inland floodingElk Grove: Moderate, mostly inland floodingBloomingdale: Very low, mostly inland floodingElk Grove Village: Very low, mostly inland floodingHanover Park: Low, mostly cold wavesCuba: High, mostly inland floodingFremont: Very low, mostly inland floodingHawthorn Woods: Very low, mostly inland floodingNorth Barrington: Low, mostly inland floodingPalatine: Low, mostly inland flooding PalatineBarringtonWheelingArlington HeightsPalatineHoffman EstatesSchaumburgInvernessElaRolling MeadowsBarringtonSouth Barrington
Very lowLowModerateHighVery high
Wheelingmostly inland floodingModerate
Rolling Meadowsmostly inland floodingModerate
Arlington Heightsmostly inland floodingModerate
Palatinemostly inland floodingLow
Palatinemostly inland floodingLow
Invernessmostly inland floodingLow
Schaumburgmostly inland floodingLow
Elamostly inland floodingLow
Barringtonmostly inland floodingVery low
South Barringtonmostly inland floodingVery low
Hoffman Estatesmostly cold wavesVery low
Barringtonmostly 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. Palatine covers 23 census tracts, combined by population.
Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Palatine’s own flood-insurance community (here, the census tracts inside it); household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Township of Palatine. 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 Palatine total about $50.6M 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.

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/15 · 2025-01-01
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