Arkansas Ordnance Plant Guard House · Photo: Valis55 · CC BY-SA 3.0FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Gibson than in 83% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Gibson gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 83% of U.S. towns, #84 of 123 in Arkansas. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (70%), then earthquakes (11%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.
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 Gibson 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
Earthquakes
Tornadoes
Ice storms
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 Gibson’s grade
River and rain flooding is 70% of the building damage FEMA expects in Gibson, and Gibson’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 83% of U.S. census tracts. Tornadoes add 10%, at a rate in the top 6% of U.S. census tracts.
C− #84 of 123 in Arkansas; higher expected damage per building than 83% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Gibson’s residents live in 2 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Arkansas town has higher expected damage than 73% of U.S. towns; within the state, Gibson has more expected damage per building than 68% of Arkansas towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.8M a year in losses across Gibson: $1.2M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Gibson flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Gibson. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Gibson isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Pulaski County.The storms Gibson remembers
None of the 27 disasters declared for Pulaski County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Gibson itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
Pulaski County has had 27 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then floods. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Gibson and its neighbors
Gibson is 2nd of the 3 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sherwood | C−more damage than 79% | river and rain flooding | 166 |
| Gibson | C−more damage than 83% | river and rain flooding | 0 |
| North Little Rock | Dmore damage than 89% | river and rain flooding | 178 |
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 Gibson 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.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- 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.
- Ice brings down trees and lines: plan for days without power.
- Run a generator outside, far from doors and windows.
- Keep sand or salt by the door.
- 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 Gibson
Is Gibson at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Gibson has higher expected damage per building than 83% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk, #84 of 123 in Arkansas. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (70%) and earthquakes (11%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Gibson 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 Pulaski County, 22% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.1% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Gibson?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Gibson’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Gibson at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (70%), and Gibson’s rate for it is higher than 83% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Gibson.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Gibson’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.