Editorial
Most disaster-prone counties in Illinois
Illinois has 1,311 county-level FEMA disaster declarations across 102 counties. The dominant hazard type is flood. Calhoun County leads with 25 declarations, followed by Pike County and Cook County.
This ranking shows every county in Illinois ordered by how many times FEMA has issued a disaster declaration affecting it. Counties near coastlines, river systems, or wildfire corridors tend to appear at the top because the same geographic exposure produces recurring events across decades.
Each county links to a full disaster history page with the complete declaration timeline, hazard type breakdown, decade trends, and whatever FEMA spending data is available. For a national view, see the most disaster-prone counties in America page.
Illinois ranking
All counties by FEMA declaration count
| # | County | Declarations | Top hazard | First year | Latest year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Calhoun County | 25 | Flood | 1969 | 2023 |
| 2 | Pike County | 25 | Flood | 1965 | 2023 |
| 3 | Cook County | 24 | Flood | 1967 | 2024 |
| 4 | Adams County | 21 | Flood | 1965 | 2020 |
| 5 | Cass County | 21 | Flood | 1973 | 2021 |
| 6 | Fulton County | 20 | Flood | 1973 | 2024 |
| 7 | Jersey County | 20 | Flood | 1969 | 2021 |
| 8 | LaSalle County | 20 | Flood | 1967 | 2020 |
| 9 | Monroe County | 20 | Flood | 1969 | 2023 |
| 10 | Greene County | 19 | Severe Storm | 1973 | 2020 |
| 11 | Hancock County | 19 | Flood | 1973 | 2023 |
| 12 | St. Clair County | 19 | Flood | 1968 | 2024 |
| 13 | Will County | 19 | Severe Storm | 1967 | 2024 |
| 14 | Winnebago County | 19 | Snowstorm | 1967 | 2024 |
| 15 | Mason County | 18 | Flood | 1968 | 2020 |
| 16 | Schuyler County | 18 | Flood | 1973 | 2020 |
| 17 | Scott County | 18 | Severe Storm | 1973 | 2023 |
| 18 | Alexander County | 17 | Severe Storm | 1969 | 2020 |
| 19 | Bureau County | 17 | Flood | 1973 | 2020 |
| 20 | Lake County | 17 | Snowstorm | 1965 | 2020 |
| 21 | Morgan County | 17 | Flood | 1973 | 2023 |
| 22 | Randolph County | 17 | Severe Storm | 1969 | 2020 |
| 23 | Brown County | 16 | Flood | 1973 | 2020 |
| 24 | Carroll County | 16 | Flood | 1965 | 2020 |
| 25 | DuPage County | 16 | Flood | 1967 | 2020 |
| 26 | Henderson County | 16 | Flood | 1965 | 2020 |
| 27 | Henry County | 16 | Flood | 1973 | 2024 |
| 28 | Jo Daviess County | 16 | Flood | 1965 | 2020 |
| 29 | Kane County | 16 | Flood | 1967 | 2020 |
| 30 | Madison County | 16 | Flood | 1969 | 2021 |
| 31 | McHenry County | 16 | Snowstorm | 1965 | 2020 |
| 32 | Grundy County | 15 | Flood | 1972 | 2020 |
| 33 | Jackson County | 15 | Flood | 1969 | 2020 |
| 34 | Mercer County | 15 | Flood | 1965 | 2020 |
| 35 | Peoria County | 15 | Flood | 1973 | 2020 |
| 36 | Rock Island County | 15 | Flood | 1965 | 2020 |
| 37 | Tazewell County | 15 | Flood | 1973 | 2020 |
| 38 | Union County | 15 | Flood | 1969 | 2020 |
| 39 | Marshall County | 14 | Snowstorm | 1974 | 2020 |
| 40 | Ogle County | 14 | Snowstorm | 1973 | 2020 |
| 41 | Pulaski County | 14 | Severe Storm | 1969 | 2020 |
| 42 | Stephenson County | 14 | Flood | 1969 | 2020 |
| 43 | Whiteside County | 14 | Flood | 1965 | 2020 |
| 44 | Woodford County | 14 | Flood | 1974 | 2020 |
| 45 | Douglas County | 13 | Severe Storm | 1990 | 2023 |
| 46 | Kendall County | 13 | Snowstorm | 1973 | 2020 |
| 47 | Champaign County | 12 | Tornado | 1968 | 2020 |
| 48 | DeKalb County | 12 | Flood | 1973 | 2020 |
| 49 | Logan County | 12 | Snowstorm | 1968 | 2023 |
| 50 | Massac County | 12 | Severe Storm | 1973 | 2020 |
| 51 | Menard County | 12 | Snowstorm | 1973 | 2021 |
| 52 | Pope County | 12 | Severe Storm | 1973 | 2020 |
| 53 | Sangamon County | 12 | Severe Storm | 1974 | 2023 |
| 54 | Vermilion County | 12 | Tornado | 1968 | 2023 |
| 55 | Boone County | 11 | Snowstorm | 1967 | 2020 |
| 56 | De Witt County | 11 | Snowstorm | 1968 | 2023 |
| 57 | Gallatin County | 11 | Severe Storm | 1973 | 2020 |
| 58 | Knox County | 11 | Flood | 1974 | 2020 |
| 59 | Livingston County | 11 | Snowstorm | 1974 | 2020 |
| 60 | Macon County | 11 | Biological | 1974 | 2023 |
| 61 | McDonough County | 11 | Snowstorm | 1999 | 2023 |
| 62 | McLean County | 11 | Snowstorm | 1968 | 2020 |
| 63 | Putnam County | 11 | Snowstorm | 1979 | 2020 |
| 64 | Clark County | 10 | Flood | 1974 | 2023 |
| 65 | Franklin County | 10 | Severe Storm | 1973 | 2020 |
| 66 | Hamilton County | 10 | Severe Storm | 1989 | 2020 |
| 67 | Lee County | 10 | Flood | 1973 | 2020 |
| 68 | Moultrie County | 10 | Snowstorm | 1990 | 2023 |
| 69 | Shelby County | 10 | Snowstorm | 1990 | 2021 |
| 70 | Wabash County | 10 | Severe Storm | 1989 | 2020 |
| 71 | White County | 10 | Severe Storm | 1983 | 2020 |
| 72 | Coles County | 9 | Biological | 1974 | 2023 |
| 73 | Crawford County | 9 | Biological | 1985 | 2020 |
| 74 | Cumberland County | 9 | Severe Storm | 1974 | 2023 |
| 75 | Edgar County | 9 | Biological | 1974 | 2023 |
| 76 | Iroquois County | 9 | Snowstorm | 1990 | 2020 |
| 77 | Jasper County | 9 | Severe Storm | 1990 | 2020 |
| 78 | Lawrence County | 9 | Severe Storm | 1996 | 2020 |
| 79 | Macoupin County | 9 | Severe Storm | 1982 | 2021 |
| 80 | Piatt County | 9 | Snowstorm | 1968 | 2020 |
| 81 | Saline County | 9 | Severe Storm | 1996 | 2020 |
| 82 | Warren County | 9 | Biological | 1993 | 2023 |
| 83 | Washington County | 9 | Biological | 2002 | 2024 |
| 84 | Williamson County | 9 | Severe Storm | 1982 | 2020 |
| 85 | Christian County | 8 | Snowstorm | 1999 | 2023 |
| 86 | Fayette County | 8 | Tornado | 2002 | 2021 |
| 87 | Ford County | 8 | Snowstorm | 1990 | 2020 |
| 88 | Hardin County | 8 | Severe Storm | 1997 | 2020 |
| 89 | Marion County | 8 | Severe Storm | 1990 | 2020 |
| 90 | Richland County | 8 | Biological | 1990 | 2020 |
| 91 | Stark County | 8 | Snowstorm | 1999 | 2020 |
| 92 | Wayne County | 8 | Tornado | 1989 | 2020 |
| 93 | Bond County | 7 | Biological | 2002 | 2021 |
| 94 | Clinton County | 7 | Biological | 1969 | 2020 |
| 95 | Edwards County | 7 | Biological | 1989 | 2020 |
| 96 | Effingham County | 7 | Biological | 1996 | 2021 |
| 97 | Johnson County | 7 | Biological | 1973 | 2020 |
| 98 | Kankakee County | 7 | Biological | 1973 | 2020 |
| 99 | Montgomery County | 7 | Biological | 2002 | 2021 |
| 100 | Perry County | 7 | Biological | 1982 | 2020 |
| 101 | Clay County | 5 | Biological | 2002 | 2020 |
| 102 | Jefferson County | 5 | Biological | 2002 | 2020 |