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C−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in New Athens Township · FEMA

FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in New Athens Township than in 84% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, New Athens Township gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 84% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (62%), then earthquakes (27%). Flood insurance has paid 11 claims here since 1993.

River and rain flooding 62%Earthquakes 27%Tornadoes 6%

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 84%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 84% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
62% of expected building damage
Flood claims
11
paid since 1993 · $301K
Flood claims per home
9 per 1,000
more than 72% of U.S. towns
By hazard

What New Athens 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

62%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 79% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Earthquakes

27%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 86% of U.S. census tracts

Tornadoes

6%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 78% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 16 years in the area
Smaller shares here
 Hail Ice storms Winter storms Strong wind 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 9% of New Athens 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 New Athens Township’s grade

River and rain flooding is 62% of the building damage FEMA expects in New Athens Township, and New Athens Township’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 79% of U.S. census tracts. Next is earthquakes at 27% (higher than 86% of U.S. census tracts).

Where New Athens Township sits
New Athens Township
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C− higher expected damage per building than 84% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding62%Earthquakes27%Tornadoes6%Everything else5%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.7M a year in losses across New Athens Township: $1.1M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of New Athens Township’s 2,562 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Prairie Du Long township (2,622 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 New Athens Township flood? Sometimes: 11 flood claims since 1993

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in New Athens Township, from FEMA’s records: 9.1 per 1,000 homes, more than 72% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1993: 1 claim1994: 0 claims1995: 1 claim1996: 0 claims1997: 0 claims1998: 0 claims1999: 0 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 0 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 0 claims2004: 0 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 1 claim2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 3 claims2016: 2 claims2017: 2 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 1 claim2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims201520162017
19932026
Biggest named events
  • The Early winter storms4 claims · $141K
  • The Mid-spring storms1 claim · $5K
  • The Midwest Flooding1 claim · $9K
11
paid claims since 1993
$301K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$27K
average claim
of all homes are insured
No community discount

New Athens 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: St. Clair County.
Disasters

The storms New Athens Township remembers

None of the 16 disasters declared for St. Clair County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching New Athens Township itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.

  1. 20153 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
  2. 20162 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
  3. 20172 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in New Athens TownshipSt. Clair County only

St. Clair County has had 16 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 New Athens Township after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the New Athens Township archive →
Next door

New Athens Township and its neighbors

New Athens Township is 3rd of the 4 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Lenzburg Township: not gradedFreeburg Township: not gradedPrairie Du Long Township: hazard risk C−Fayetteville Township: hazard risk DNew Athens: hazard risk C−Lenzburg TownshipFreeburg TownshipPrairie Du Long TownshipFayetteville TownshipNew AthensNew Athens Township
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
Prairie Du Long TownshipC−more damage than 84%river and rain flooding—
New AthensC−more damage than 84%river and rain flooding6
New Athens TownshipC−more damage than 84%river and rain flooding11
Fayetteville TownshipDmore damage than 86%river and rain flooding9
Lenzburg Township—943 residents; we grade 1,000+
Freeburg 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 New Athens 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 ↗
Earthquakes
  • Drop, cover and hold on.
  • Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
  • Know how to shut off the gas.
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 New Athens Township

Is New Athens Township at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, New Athens Township has higher expected damage per building than 84% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (62%) and earthquakes (27%). 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.

Does New Athens Township flood?

Flood insurance has paid 11 claims in New Athens Township since 1993, $301K in all, or 9.1 per 1,000 homes, more than 72% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Early winter storms (4).

Is New Athens 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 St. Clair County, 1.0% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.

How much is flood insurance in New Athens Township?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for New Athens 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 New Athens Township?

By flood claims, Early winter storms: 4 paid, $141K.

Is New Athens Township at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (62%), and New Athens Township’s rate for it is higher than 79% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in New Athens Township.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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