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B−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Deer Creek Township · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, Deer Creek Township faces about as much hazard damage per building as the typical U.S. town, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Deer Creek Township gets a B− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 54% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (75%), then tornadoes (16%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

River and rain flooding 75%Tornadoes 16%Earthquakes 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 54%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
B−
in Illinois · higher than 54% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
75% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
3
of 12 declared for Tazewell County
By hazard

What Deer Creek 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

75%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 64% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area

Tornadoes

16%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 13 years in the area
Smaller shares here
 Earthquakes Hail Strong wind Ice storms Winter storms Lightning Hurricanes Wildfire 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 21% of Deer Creek 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 Deer Creek Township’s grade

River and rain flooding is 75% of the building damage FEMA expects in Deer Creek Township, and Deer Creek Township’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 64% of U.S. census tracts. Tornadoes add 16%, at a rate in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Deer Creek Township sits
Deer Creek Township
Least damageMiddleMost damage

B− higher expected damage per building than 54% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding75%Tornadoes16%Earthquakes3%Everything else6%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $662K a year in losses across Deer Creek Township: $395K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Deer Creek Township’s 1,411 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Mackinaw township (4,245 residents) and Mackinaw village (1,879 residents) and Heritage Lake CDP (1,523 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 Deer Creek Township flood? No paid flood claims on record

FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Deer Creek 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

Deer Creek 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: Tazewell County.
Disasters

3 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Deer Creek Township

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

  1. 2013Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding$14K to Deer Creek Township for repairs
  2. 2011Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$4K to Deer Creek Township for repairs
  3. 2006Snow$3K to Deer Creek Township for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Deer Creek TownshipTazewell County only

Tazewell County has had 12 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often floods, then severe storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Deer Creek Township archive →
Next door

Deer Creek Township and its neighbors

Deer Creek Township is 2nd of the 3 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Mackinaw Township: hazard risk B−Montgomery Township: hazard risk B−Morton Township: not gradedMackinaw TownshipMontgomery TownshipMorton TownshipDeer Creek Township
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
Mackinaw TownshipB−more damage than 54%river and rain flooding3
Deer Creek TownshipB−more damage than 54%river and rain flooding0
Montgomery TownshipB−more damage than 54%river and rain flooding1
Morton Township—not graded yet

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 Deer Creek 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 Deer Creek Township

Is Deer Creek Township at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Deer Creek Township has higher expected damage per building than 54% of U.S. towns: B− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (75%) and tornadoes (16%). 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 Deer Creek 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 Tazewell County, 17% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.2% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Deer Creek Township?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Deer Creek 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 Deer Creek Township?

By FEMA money that reached Deer Creek Township, Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding (2013): $14K to Deer Creek Township for repairs.

Is Deer Creek Township at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (75%), and Deer Creek Township’s rate for it is higher than 64% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Deer Creek Township.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Deer Creek 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.