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C+Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Big Grove Township · FEMA

FEMA expects about as much hazard damage per building in Big Grove Township as in the typical U.S. town, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Big Grove Township gets a C+ for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 58% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (83%), then tornadoes (12%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

River and rain flooding 83%Tornadoes 12%Strong wind 3%

Graded on FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value (NRI v1.20, December 2025), weighted by where residents live; flood claims are shown, not graded. How hazard risk is graded

more than 58%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
C+
in Illinois · higher than 58% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
83% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
2
of 10 declared for Kendall County
By hazard

What Big Grove Township faces

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

River and rain flooding

83%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 73% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area

Tornadoes

12%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 88% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 11 years in the area
Smaller shares here
 Strong wind Earthquakes Hail Ice storms Lightning Hurricanes Wildfire Winter storms Cold waves Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 28% of Big Grove Township’s expected losses. Cold waves do little damage to buildings (0.0%), so they aren’t part of the grade.

Shares are of FEMA’s expected building damage, the measure the grade uses; ranks compare each hazard’s building-damage rate with all 85,154 U.S. census tracts. In FEMA’s terms, river and rain flooding is FEMA’s “Inland Flooding” (rivers and streams overflowing their banks, or rain overwhelming drainage). FEMA defines coastal flooding as high or rising tides and storm surge, so surge damage is counted there. Drought isn’t listed: FEMA counts its losses in crops only.

Flood risk changes street by street. Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.
Hazard risk grade

What’s behind Big Grove Township’s grade

River and rain flooding is 83% of the building damage FEMA expects in Big Grove Township, and Big Grove Township’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 73% of U.S. census tracts. Next is tornadoes at 12% (higher than 88% of U.S. census tracts).

Where Big Grove Township sits
Big Grove Township
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C+ higher expected damage per building than 58% of U.S. towns (21,298).

All of Big Grove Township’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding83%Tornadoes12%Everything else5%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $995K a year in losses across Big Grove Township: $579K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Big Grove Township’s 1,622 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Seward township (6,655 residents) and Lisbon township (771 residents) and Lisbon village (271 residents) and Plattville village (220 residents). FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s, the same for all of them. The flood claims below are the township’s own.
A shared figure. The grade describes the whole tract, not each street in it, and FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Big Grove Township flood? No paid flood claims on record

FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Big Grove Township. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.

of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

Big Grove Township isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Kendall County.
Disasters

2 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Big Grove Township

Disasters that paid out in Big Grove Township itself (aid to households or repair grants to Big Grove Township), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.

  1. 2000Illinois Winter Snow Storms$3K to Big Grove Township for repairs
  2. 1999Il-winter Storm 1/1/99$6K to Big Grove Township for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Big Grove TownshipKendall County only

Kendall County has had 10 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often winter storms, then floods. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.

Were you here?

Old photos of Big Grove Township after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Big Grove Township archive →
Next door

Big Grove Township and its neighbors

Big Grove Township is 3rd of the 3 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Fox Township: hazard risk B+Nettle Creek Township: not gradedLisbon Township: not gradedMission Township: hazard risk B−Fox TownshipNettle Creek TownshipLisbon TownshipMission TownshipBig Grove Township
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
Fox TownshipB+less damage than 65%river and rain flooding1
Mission TownshipB−less damage than 52%river and rain flooding—
Big Grove TownshipC+more damage than 58%river and rain flooding0
Nettle Creek Township—805 residents; we grade 1,000+
Lisbon Township—780 residents; we grade 1,000+

Hazard risk = FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade; the map is shaded by fifths of the same scale. Flood claims = paid federal flood insurance claims on record.

Be ready

Get ready for what Big Grove Township faces

A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.

When the river rises
  • Turn around at flooded roads: a foot of moving water can carry off a car.
  • Flood insurance usually takes 30 days to start, so buy it before the forecast.
  • Keep papers and medicines up high, in a grab-and-go bag.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Tornado warnings
  • Pick your spot now: the lowest floor, an inside room, no windows.
  • A watch means be ready; a warning means take cover now.
  • Keep shoes and a flashlight by the bed.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Before you buy or rent
  • Look up the address on FEMA’s flood map.
  • Ask the seller or landlord whether it has ever flooded, and what flood insurance costs there.
  • Get a flood insurance quote early: policies usually start 30 days after you buy.
When a storm is coming
Forecast and alertsWeather →911, the nearest ERSafety →

Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.

Questions about natural hazards in Big Grove Township

Is Big Grove Township at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Big Grove Township has higher expected damage per building than 58% of U.S. towns: C+ for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (83%) and tornadoes (12%). The figures are for the one census tract the town shares with its neighbors. This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Is Big Grove Township in a flood zone?

Flood zones are drawn street by street, so the answer depends on the address: look it up on FEMA’s flood map. In Kendall County, 22% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.2% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Big Grove Township?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Big Grove Township’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.

What was the biggest storm in Big Grove Township?

By FEMA money that reached Big Grove Township, Il-winter Storm 1/1/99 (1999): $6K to Big Grove Township for repairs.

Is Big Grove Township at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (83%), and Big Grove Township’s rate for it is higher than 73% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Big Grove Township.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Big Grove Township’s residents lived in the 2020 census; 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. Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. Preparedness tips: Ready.gov. FEMA’s model is an average of expected damage, not a forecast. How hazard risk is graded.