Meek Building · Photo: Brandonrush · CC BY-SA 4.0Storms, floods and disasters in Leslie
Leslie isn’t graded for hazard risk: Leslie has 444 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more.
What Leslie 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
Ice storms
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 Leslie flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Leslie. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
8 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Leslie
Disasters that paid out in Leslie itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Leslie), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2025Severe Storms and Tornadoes1 households applied for aid$300 aid approved
- 2015Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding$5K to the City of Leslie for repairs
- 2013Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding$20K to the City of Leslie for repairs
- 2009Severe Winter Storm$28K to the City of Leslie for repairs
- 2008Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding9 households applied for aid$34K aid approved$31K to the City of Leslie for repairs
- 2008Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding3 households applied for aid$3K aid approved
Show all 8
- 2002Severe Ice Storm$6K to the City of Leslie for repairs
- 2000Severe Winter Ice Storm$1K to the City of Leslie for repairs
Searcy County has had 21 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then winter storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Old photos of Leslie after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Leslie archive →Get ready for what Leslie 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.
- 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.
- 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 Leslie
Is Leslie 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.
How much is flood insurance in Leslie?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Leslie’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 Leslie?
By FEMA money that reached Leslie, Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding (2008): 9 households applied for aid, $34K approved, and $31K to the City of Leslie for repairs.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Leslie.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Leslie’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.