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Seward Alaska aerial viewPhoto: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, photographer not specified or unknown · Public domain
D−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Seward · FEMA

More hazard damage per building is expected in Seward than in 98% of U.S. towns, led by tsunamis

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Seward gets a D− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns, #38 of 41 in Alaska. Most of that expected damage is tsunamis (49%), then earthquakes (46%). Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 2012.

Tsunamis 49%Earthquakes 46%River and rain flooding 4%

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 98%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#38 of 41 in Alaska
Hazard risk
D−#38 of 41
in Alaska · higher than 98% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
Tsunamis
49% of expected building damage
Flood claims
1
paid since 2012 · $40K
Disasters paid out here
9
of 14 declared for Kenai Peninsula Borough
By hazard

What Seward faces

Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.

Tsunamis

49%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts

Earthquakes

46%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 River and rain flooding Winter storms Wildfire Avalanches top 0% Coastal flooding Tornadoes Hail Ice storms Landslides Lightning
FEMA models no building damage here
HurricanesStrong windCold wavesHeat wavesVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts avalanches at 46% of Seward’s expected losses. Avalanches do little damage to buildings (0.1%), 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. 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.

Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.
Hazard risk grade

What’s behind Seward’s grade

Tsunamis are 49% of the building damage FEMA expects in Seward, and Seward’s rate of tsunamis damage is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts. Earthquakes add 46%, at a rate in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Seward sits
Seward
Least damageMiddleMost damage

D− #38 of 41 in Alaska; higher expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
Tsunamis49%Earthquakes46%River and rain flooding4%Everything else0%

The typical Alaska town has higher expected damage than 93% of U.S. towns; within the state, Seward has more expected damage per building than 92% of Alaska towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $11.8M a year in losses across Seward: $4.4M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Seward’s 2,717 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Bear Creek CDP (2,129 residents) and Lowell Point CDP (79 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 town’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 Seward flood? Rarely: 1 flood claim since 2012

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Seward, from FEMA’s records: 0.8 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 82% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
2012: 1 claim2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims2012
20122026
1
paid claims since 2012
$40K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$40K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

Seward isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Kenai Peninsula Borough.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
1flood-prone property bought out and cleared
1flood-prone home bought out and moved
1home raised above flood level
1building floodproofed
Disasters

9 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Seward

Disasters that paid out in Seward itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Seward), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.

  1. 2022Landslide$912K to the City of Seward for repairs
  2. 2018Earthquake5 households applied for aid$6K aid approved
  3. 2017Severe Storm$3.0M to the City of Seward for repairs
  4. 2013Flooding$142K to the City of Seward for repairs
  5. 2012Severe Storm, Straight-line Winds, Flooding, and Landslides$361K to the City of Seward for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
  6. 2011Severe Storm$50K to the City of Seward for repairs
Show all 9
  1. 2006Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides$532K to the City of Seward for repairs
  2. 2002Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, Coastal Erosion and Tidal Surge65 households applied for aid$62K aid approved$28K to the City of Seward for repairs
  3. 1999Severe Winter Storms and Avalanches$328K to the City of Seward for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in SewardKenai Peninsula Borough only

Kenai Peninsula 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 Kenai Peninsula Borough, 2007–2015.

Were you here?

Old photos of Seward after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Seward archive →
Next door

Seward and its neighbors

Seward is 2nd of the 2 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Bear Creek: hazard risk D−Bear CreekSeward
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
Bear CreekD−more damage than 98%tsunamis—
SewardD−more damage than 98%tsunamis1

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 Seward faces

A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.

Tsunamis
  • Strong shaking or a sudden drop in the sea means head for high ground now.
  • Learn the tsunami route signs near the shore.
  • Stay away until officials say it’s safe.
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 Seward

Is Seward at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Seward has higher expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns: D− for hazard risk, #38 of 41 in Alaska. Most of the expected damage is tsunamis (49%) and earthquakes (46%). 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 Seward flood?

Flood insurance has paid 1 claim in Seward since 2012, $40K in all, or 0.8 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 82% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Is Seward 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 Kenai Peninsula Borough, 61% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.8% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Seward?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Seward’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 Seward?

By FEMA money that reached Seward, Severe Storm (2017): $3.0M to the City of Seward for repairs.

Is Seward at risk from tsunamis?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (49%), and Seward’s rate for it is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Seward.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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