Photo: User:Visviva · CC BY-SA 4.0On FEMA’s figures, Elwood 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, Elwood gets a B for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 60% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (84%), then tornadoes (12%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.
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
What Elwood 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
Tornadoes
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.
What’s behind Elwood’s grade
River and rain flooding is 84% of the building damage FEMA expects in Elwood, and Elwood’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 61% of U.S. census tracts. Next is tornadoes at 12% (higher than 82% of U.S. census tracts).
B lower expected damage per building than 60% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Elwood’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.9M a year in losses across Elwood: $1.4M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Elwood flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Elwood. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Elwood isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Will County.5 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Elwood
Disasters that paid out in Elwood itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Village of Elwood), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2024Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Floodng25 households applied for aid$27K aid approved
- 2013Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding7 households applied for aid$34K aid approved$37K to the Village of Elwood for repairs
- 2011Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$13K to the Village of Elwood for repairs
- 2007Severe Storms and Flooding1 households applied for aid$22K aid approved
- 1999Il-winter Storm 1/1/99$4K to the Village of Elwood for repairs
Will County has had 16 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then floods. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Old photos of Elwood after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Elwood archive →Elwood and its neighbors
Elwood has the lowest expected damage per building of the 2 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elwood | Bless damage than 60% | river and rain flooding | 0 |
| Joliet | C+more damage than 59% | river and rain flooding | 630 |
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.
Get ready for what Elwood faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Questions about natural hazards in Elwood
Is Elwood at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Elwood has lower expected damage per building than 60% of U.S. towns: B for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (84%) 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 Elwood 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 Will County, 23% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.5% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Elwood?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Elwood’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 Elwood?
By FEMA money that reached Elwood, Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding (2013): 7 households applied for aid, $34K approved, and $37K to the Village of Elwood for repairs.
Is Elwood at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (84%), and Elwood’s rate for it is higher than 61% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Elwood.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Elwood’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.