Editing Villa Grove, Illinois (section)

=== Flooding ===
Villa Grove's location at the confluence of Jordan Slough and the [[Embarras River (Illinois)|Embarras River]] has resulted in flooding during the city's history. In January 1950, Villa Grove was isolated by flooding, more than 1/3 of the city was underwater and the Red Cross reported 100 families were homeless.<ref>{{cite news |title= Southern Illinois River Areas Brace for Flood; Wabash Rises at Mt. Carmel |location= Harrisburg, IL |newspaper= Daily Register |date= January 5, 1950 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title= National Guard Battles Floods; At least 4,000 people in area are homeless |location= Jacksonville, IL |newspaper= Daily Journal |date= January 8, 1950 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title= Army to Check Flood Problem at Villa Grove |location= Mattoon, IL |newspaper= Daily Journal Gazette |date= January 21, 1950}}</ref> Another flood in April 1994 left over half of the city's 1,000 homes flooded<ref>{{cite news |title= Flood weary residents run for high ground |location= Lawrence, KS |newspaper= Journal World |date= April 14, 1994 }}</ref> and the city's water supply was tainted.<ref>{{cite news |title= Floodwaters Return; Midwesterners Victimized Again |location= Harrisonburg, IL |newspaper= Daily News Record |date= April 15, 1994 }}</ref> At one point, portions of main street were 6 feet underwater.<ref>{{cite news |title= Heavy April Showers Bring Flooding |newspaper= Daily Herald |location= Arlington Heights, IL |date= April 13, 1994 }}</ref>

After the severe flooding in 1994 and additional flooding in the following years, a program was implemented to purchase and demolish homes voluntarily from owners in the [[flood plain]]. The [[Federal Emergency Management Agency]] (FEMA) and the [[Illinois Emergency Management Agency]] (IEMA) used the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) to purchase 17 homes in two phases from 1995 to 2000. IEMA noted that when another flood occurred in June 2008, the 17 properties purchased would have again been flooded had they not been purchased and demolished. Additional plans were also made to purchase more flood prone properties after the 2008 flood.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.llis.dhs.gov/content/when-enough-really-enough |title= When Enough is Really Enough |website= llis.dhs.gov |access-date= November 1, 2014 }}</ref> After flooding in April 2013, FEMA again provided funding to purchase and demolish eight more homes and one public building in Villa Grove under HMGP.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.fema.gov/news-release/2014/02/13/fema-awards-351066-grant-villa-grove-hazard-mitigation-funds-will-be-used-0 |title= FEMA Awards $351,066 Grant to Villa Grove: Hazard mitigation funds will be used to acquire and demolish nine flood prone structures  |website= FEMA |date= February 19, 2014 }}</ref>

These improvements have minimized the amount of area impacted by flooding. In 2021, a new bridge was built on Illinois Route 130 over the river. The new bridge is at a higher elevation and allows for better drainage. These improvements have resulted in minimal flooding in the area in recent years.