Natural hazards · St. Joseph

St. Joseph, IL natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in St. Joseph comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is very high for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 22 claims here since 1983. 2 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is St. Joseph?

Very high

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in St. Joseph to be higher than in 83% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and cold waves.

Inland flooding64%Cold waves17%Tornadoes10%Everything else9%

By hazard

What St. Joseph faces

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

Inland flooding

64% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 94% of U.S. places

Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Cold waves

17% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 57% of U.S. places

Recorded about 4 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

10% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 87% of U.S. places

Lower here

HurricanesHailIce stormsWinter weatherHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesStrong 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 St. Joseph flood?

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

22paid claims since 1983

$336Kpaid to owners

4homes flooded more than once

19832026

Biggest named events

Early winter storms: 1 claim, $10K

Homes that flooded again and again

■ FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (1) ■ flooded 2+ times

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Champaign County.

What’s been done with FEMA grants

2flood-prone properties bought out and cleared

1homes raised above flood level

Disasters that hit St. Joseph

2 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into St. JosephDeclared for Champaign County only

2013

Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, and Tornadoes

2 households applied for aid

1999

Il-Winter Storm 1/1/99

$4K to the Village of St. Joseph for repairs

Champaign County has had 10 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often tornadoes and severe storms.

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. St. Joseph covers 1 census tract, combined by population.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to St. Joseph’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Village of St. Joseph. 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 St. Joseph total about $2.3M 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.