Photo: Malcolm Manners · CC BY 2.0FEMA puts Gateway’s expected hazard damage per building above that of 95% of U.S. towns, mostly from earthquakes
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Gateway gets a D− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 95% of U.S. towns, #27 of 41 in Alaska. Most of that expected damage is earthquakes (92%). Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 2012.
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
What Gateway faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
Earthquakes
River and rain flooding
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.
What’s behind Gateway’s grade
Earthquakes are 92% of the building damage FEMA expects in Gateway, and Gateway’s rate of earthquakes damage is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts. Wildfire adds 1%, at a rate in the top 10% of U.S. census tracts.
D− #27 of 41 in Alaska; higher expected damage per building than 95% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Gateway’s residents live in 5 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Alaska town has higher expected damage than 93% of U.S. towns; within the state, Gateway has more expected damage per building than 65% of Alaska towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $9.2M a year in losses across Gateway: $7.7M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Gateway flood? Rarely: 1 flood claim since 2012
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Gateway, from FEMA’s records: 0.5 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 91% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Gateway isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Matanuska-Susitna Borough.The storms Gateway remembers
None of the 14 disasters declared for Matanuska-Susitna Borough shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Gateway itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 20121 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storm, Straight-line Winds, Flooding, and Landslides, declared for Matanuska-Susitna Borough
Matanuska-Susitna Borough has had 14 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then floods.
Also 3 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Matanuska-Susitna Borough, 2015–2019.
Old photos of Gateway after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Gateway archive →Gateway and its neighbors
Gateway is 2nd of the 5 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Farm Loop | Dmore damage than 93% | earthquakes | — |
| Gateway | D−more damage than 95% | earthquakes | 1 |
| South Lakes | D−more damage than 96% | earthquakes | — |
| Knik-Fairview | D−more damage than 96% | earthquakes | — |
| Wasilla | D−more damage than 97% | earthquakes | 2 |
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.
Get ready for what Gateway faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- 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.
- 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.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Questions about natural hazards in Gateway
Is Gateway at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Gateway has higher expected damage per building than 95% of U.S. towns: D− for hazard risk, #27 of 41 in Alaska. Most of the expected damage is earthquakes (92%) and river and rain flooding (7%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Gateway flood?
Flood insurance has paid 1 claim in Gateway since 2012, $3K in all, or 0.5 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 91% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Is Gateway 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 Matanuska-Susitna Borough, 23% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.4% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Gateway?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Gateway’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Gateway at risk from earthquakes?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (92%), and Gateway’s rate for it is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Gateway.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Gateway’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.