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C+Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Hillside · FEMA

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

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Hillside gets a C+ for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 57% of U.S. towns, #411 of 768 in Illinois. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (87%). Flood insurance has paid 7 claims here since 2013.

River and rain flooding 87%Tornadoes 9%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 57%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#411 of 768 in Illinois
Hazard risk
C+#411 of 768
in Illinois · higher than 57% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
87% of expected building damage
Flood claims
7
paid since 2013 · $772K
Disasters paid out here
6
of 21 declared for Cook County
By hazard

What Hillside 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

87%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 75% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 6 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

9%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 76% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Earthquakes Hail Strong wind Winter storms Ice storms Hurricanes Wildfire Cold waves Heat waves Landslides Lightning
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 Hillside’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 Hillside’s grade

River and rain flooding is 87% of the building damage FEMA expects in Hillside, and Hillside’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 75% of U.S. census tracts. Next is tornadoes at 9% (higher than 76% of U.S. census tracts).

Where Hillside sits
Hillside
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C+ #411 of 768 in Illinois; higher expected damage per building than 57% of U.S. towns (21,298).

Hillside’s residents live in 5 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding87%Tornadoes9%Earthquakes3%Everything else1%

The typical Illinois town has higher expected damage than 54% of U.S. towns; within the state, Hillside has more expected damage per building than 53% of Illinois towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $4.0M a year in losses across Hillside: $2.2M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

A small-area figure. Hillside covers 5 census tracts, combined by where residents live. FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims and disasters below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Hillside flood? Rarely: 7 flood claims since 2013

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Hillside, from FEMA’s records: 2.2 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 59% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
2013: 5 claims2014: 1 claim2015: 1 claim2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims201320142015
20132026
Biggest named events
  • The Mid-spring storms5 claims · $743K
7
paid claims since 2013
$772K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$110K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Cook County.
Disasters

6 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Hillside

Disasters that paid out in Hillside itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Village of Hillside), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.

  1. 2024Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Floodng67 households applied for aid$216K aid approved
  2. 2023Severe Storms and Flooding26 households applied for aid$109K aid approved
  3. 2023Severe Storms and Flooding139 households applied for aid$453K aid approved
  4. 2013Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding413 households applied for aid$1.0M aid approved5 flood claims paid that year
  5. 2010Severe Storms and Flooding816 households applied for aid$2.3M aid approved
  6. 2008Severe Storms and Flooding98 households applied for aid$123K aid approved
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in HillsideCook County only

Cook County has had 21 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.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Hillside archive →
Next door

Hillside and its neighbors

Hillside is 2nd of the 4 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Bellwood: hazard risk DBerkeley: hazard risk B−Westchester: hazard risk C−BellwoodBerkeleyWestchesterHillside
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
BerkeleyB−less damage than 50%river and rain flooding2
HillsideC+more damage than 57%river and rain flooding7
WestchesterC−more damage than 80%river and rain flooding486
BellwoodDmore damage than 86%river and rain flooding1,127

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 Hillside 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 Hillside

Is Hillside at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Hillside has higher expected damage per building than 57% of U.S. towns: C+ for hazard risk, #411 of 768 in Illinois. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (87%) and tornadoes (9%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Does Hillside flood?

Flood insurance has paid 7 claims in Hillside since 2013, $772K in all, or 2.2 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 59% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Mid-spring storms (5).

Is Hillside 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 Cook County, 32% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.5% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Hillside?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Hillside’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 Hillside?

By FEMA money that reached Hillside, Severe Storms and Flooding (2010): 816 households applied for aid, $2.3M approved. By flood claims, Mid-spring storms: 5 paid, $743K.

Is Hillside at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (87%), and Hillside’s rate for it is higher than 75% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Hillside.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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