St. Luke's Episcopal Church · Photo: Altairisfar (Jeffrey Reed) · CC BY-SA 3.0Storms, floods and disasters in Orrville
Orrville isn’t graded for hazard risk: Orrville has 158 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more. Flood insurance has paid 2 claims here since 1979.
What Orrville 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
Tornadoes
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.
Does Orrville flood? Rarely: 2 flood claims since 1979
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Orrville, from FEMA’s records.
Orrville isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Dallas County.5 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Orrville
Disasters that paid out in Orrville itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Orrville), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2023Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, and Tornadoes123 households applied for aid$216K aid approved
- 2020Hurricane Zeta172 households applied for aid$258K aid approved
- 2007Severe Storms and Tornadoes77 households applied for aid$52K aid approved
- 2005Hurricane Dennis$1K to the Town of Orrville for repairs
- 2004Hurricane Ivan476 households applied for aid$544K aid approved
Dallas County has had 23 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, then severe storms.
Old photos of Orrville after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Orrville archive →Get ready for what Orrville faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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 Orrville
Does Orrville flood?
Flood insurance has paid 2 claims in Orrville since 1979, $14K in all.
Is Orrville 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 Dallas County, 8% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.1% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Orrville?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Orrville’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 Orrville?
By FEMA money that reached Orrville, Hurricane Ivan (2004): 476 households applied for aid, $544K approved.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Orrville.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Orrville’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.