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Natural hazards · New Chicago

New Chicago, IN natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in New Chicago comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is very low for a U.S. community. 4 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

How exposed is New Chicago?

19
Very low
vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in New Chicago to be higher than in 19% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and cold waves.

Inland flooding35%Cold waves31%Tornadoes25%Everything else8%
By hazard

What New Chicago faces

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

Inland flooding

35% of expected damage
Below average · higher than 31% of U.S. places
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Cold waves

31% of expected damage
Well below average · higher than 18% of U.S. places
Recorded about 4 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

25% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 83% of U.S. places

Lower here

Coastal floodingHurricanesHailIce stormsWinter weatherHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesStrong windLightning

Not a risk here

DroughtAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic 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 New Chicago flood?

FEMA's records show no paid flood insurance claims in New Chicago.

of homes in flood zones
are insured
of all homes
are insured
No community discount. New Chicago isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Lake County.
Disasters that hit New Chicago

4 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

Disasters the President declared that paid out in New Chicago itself: aid to households, or repair grants to the Town of New Chicago.

Brought FEMA money into New ChicagoDeclared for Lake County only
2026

Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding

8 households applied for aid $6K aid approved
2007

Snow

$2K to the Town of New Chicago for repairs
2000

Snow

$4K to the Town of New Chicago for repairs
1999

In-Winter Storm 12/23/98

$8K to the Town of New Chicago for repairs
Lake County has had 19 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often severe storms and winter storms.
Around New Chicago

New Chicago and the towns around it

Lake Station: Low, mostly inland floodingHobart: Low, mostly inland floodingGary: Low, mostly inland floodingHobart: Low, mostly inland floodingCalumet: Low, mostly inland floodingMerrillville: Low, mostly inland floodingUnion: Very low, mostly inland floodingRoss: Low, mostly inland floodingPortage: Low, mostly inland floodingNew Chicago: Very low, mostly inland flooding New ChicagoLake StationHobart
Very lowLowModerateHighVery high
Lake Stationmostly inland floodingLow
Hobartmostly inland floodingLow
New Chicagomostly 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. New Chicago is smaller than a census tract, so it shares the figures of the tract around its center.
Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to New Chicago’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Town of New Chicago. FEMA’s model follows property values, so a place that recently lost many homes can rate lower than it feels.

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/18 · 2025-01-01
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