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Kirby Road barn southeast of OreanaPhoto: Nyttend · Public domain
BHazard risk
Natural hazards in Whitmore Township · FEMA

FEMA puts Whitmore Township’s expected hazard damage per building below that of 64% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Whitmore Township gets a B for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 64% of U.S. towns, #187 of 768 in Illinois. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (67%), then tornadoes (15%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

River and rain flooding 67%Tornadoes 15%Earthquakes 11%

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

less than 64%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#187 of 768 in Illinois
Hazard risk
B#187 of 768
in Illinois · lower than 64% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
67% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
0
of 8 declared for Macon County
By hazard

What Whitmore 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

67%of expected building damage
About average · lower than 59% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area

Tornadoes

15%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 88% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 14 years in the area

Earthquakes

11%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 76% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Hail Strong wind Ice storms Winter storms Hurricanes Lightning 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 15% of Whitmore 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 Whitmore Township’s grade

River and rain flooding is 67% of the building damage FEMA expects in Whitmore Township, and Whitmore Township’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 59% of U.S. census tracts. Next is tornadoes at 15% (higher than 88% of U.S. census tracts).

Where Whitmore Township sits
Whitmore Township
Least damageMiddleMost damage

B #187 of 768 in Illinois; lower expected damage per building than 64% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding67%Tornadoes15%Earthquakes11%Everything else7%

The typical Illinois town has higher expected damage than 54% of U.S. towns; within the state, Whitmore Township has less expected damage per building than 76% of Illinois towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $2.2M a year in losses across Whitmore Township: $1.4M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Whitmore Township’s 4,311 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Oakley township (982 residents) and Oreana village (891 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 Whitmore Township flood? No paid flood claims on record

FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Whitmore 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

Whitmore 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: Macon County.
Disasters

The storms Whitmore Township remembers

None of the 8 disasters declared for Macon County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Whitmore Township itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.

Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Whitmore TownshipMacon County only

Macon County has had 8 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then winter storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.

Next door

Whitmore Township and its neighbors

Whitmore Township has the lowest expected damage per building of the 5 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Oakley Township: not gradedDecatur: hazard risk C+Hickory Point Township: hazard risk C+Friends Creek Township: hazard risk B−Decatur Township: hazard risk C+Oakley TownshipDecaturHickory Point TownshipFriends Creek TownshipDecatur TownshipWhitmore Township
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
Whitmore TownshipBless damage than 64%river and rain flooding0
Friends Creek TownshipB−more damage than 51%river and rain flooding1
Hickory Point TownshipC+more damage than 58%river and rain flooding53
DecaturC+more damage than 62%river and rain flooding110
Decatur TownshipC+more damage than 63%river and rain flooding55
Oakley Township—950 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 Whitmore 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 ↗
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 ↗
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 Whitmore Township

Is Whitmore Township at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Whitmore Township has lower expected damage per building than 64% of U.S. towns: B for hazard risk, #187 of 768 in Illinois. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (67%) and tornadoes (15%). 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 Whitmore 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 Macon County, 19% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.2% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Whitmore Township?

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

Is Whitmore Township at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (67%), and Whitmore Township’s rate for it is lower than 59% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Whitmore Township.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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