Natural hazards · Palos

Palos, IL natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Palos comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is high for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 80 claims here since 1978.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Palos?

High

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Palos to be higher than in 73% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and cold waves.

Inland flooding59%Cold waves21%Tornadoes11%Heat waves6%Everything else3%

By hazard

What Palos faces

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

Inland flooding

59% of expected damage

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

Recorded about 6 times a year in the area

Cold waves

21% of expected damage

Well below average · higher than 23% of U.S. places

Recorded about 4 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

11% of expected damage

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

Heat waves

6% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 79% 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 Palos flood?

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

80paid claims since 1978

$1.0Mpaid to owners

0homes flooded more than once

19782026

Biggest named events

Hurricane Ike: 3 claims, $55K

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

No community discount. Palos 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 Palos

Federal disasters declared here

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

Brought FEMA money into PalosDeclared for Cook County only

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

Around Palos

Palos and the towns around it

Very lowLowModerateHighVery high

Chicago Ridgemostly inland floodingVery high

Worthmostly inland floodingVery high

Palosmostly inland floodingHigh

Willow Springsmostly inland floodingHigh

Lyonsmostly inland floodingHigh

Palos Parkmostly inland floodingModerate

Bridgeviewmostly inland floodingModerate

Orlandmostly inland floodingModerate

Lemontmostly inland floodingLow

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. Palos covers 11 census tracts, combined by population.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Palos’s own flood-insurance community (here, the census tracts inside it); household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Township of Palos. 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 Palos total about $37.3M 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.