Photo: Quintin Soloviev · CC BY 4.0Pine Bluff’s building-damage rate from ice storms is in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Pine Bluff gets a C+ for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 64% of U.S. towns, #39 of 123 in Arkansas. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (48%), then earthquakes (28%). Flood insurance has paid 207 claims here since 1978.
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 stands out about Pine Bluff’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Pine Bluff 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 Pine Bluff’s grade
River and rain flooding is 48% of the building damage FEMA expects in Pine Bluff, and Pine Bluff’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 57% of U.S. census tracts. Tornadoes add 12%, at a rate in the top 10% of U.S. census tracts.
C+ #39 of 123 in Arkansas; higher expected damage per building than 64% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Pine Bluff’s residents live in 21 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, Pine Bluff has less expected damage per building than 69% of Arkansas towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $22.0M a year in losses across Pine Bluff: $12.9M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Pine Bluff flood? Yes: 207 flood claims since 1978
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Pine Bluff, from FEMA’s records: 10.9 per 1,000 homes, more than 75% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- The Early winter storms8 claims · $212K
- The Spring storm6 claims · $283K
- The Central U.S. April Flooding1 claim · $4K
Pine Bluff isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Jefferson County.10 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Pine Bluff
Disasters that paid out in Pine Bluff itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Pine Bluff), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2023Severe Winter Storm$334K to the City of Pine Bluff for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
- 2020Severe Storms and Straight-line Winds$283K to the City of Pine Bluff for repairs
- 2019Severe Storms and Flooding74 households applied for aid$388K aid approved$488K to the City of Pine Bluff for repairs14 flood claims paid that year
- 2015Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding72 households applied for aid$17K aid approved
- 2015Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding52 households applied for aid$36K aid approved
- 2011Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Associated Flooding81 households applied for aid$35K aid approved
Show all 10
- 2009Severe Storms and Flooding$228K to the City of Pine Bluff for repairs
- 2009Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding$26K to the City of Pine Bluff for repairs
- 2008Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding25 households applied for aid$42K aid approved7 flood claims paid that year
- 2000Severe Winter Ice Storm$5.6M to the City of Pine Bluff for repairs3 flood claims paid that year
Jefferson County has had 20 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.
Old photos of Pine Bluff after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Pine Bluff archive →Pine Bluff and its neighbors
Pine Bluff is 2nd of the 2 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| White Hall | B−less damage than 53% | river and rain flooding | 9 |
| Pine Bluff | C+more damage than 64% | river and rain flooding | 207 |
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 Pine Bluff 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 Pine Bluff
Is Pine Bluff at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Pine Bluff has higher expected damage per building than 64% of U.S. towns: C+ for hazard risk, #39 of 123 in Arkansas. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (48%) and earthquakes (28%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Pine Bluff flood?
Flood insurance has paid 207 claims in Pine Bluff since 1978, $4.0M in all, or 10.9 per 1,000 homes, more than 75% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 31 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Early winter storms (8).
Is Pine Bluff 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 Jefferson County, 12% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.9% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Pine Bluff?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Pine Bluff’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 Pine Bluff?
By FEMA money that reached Pine Bluff, Severe Winter Ice Storm (2000): $5.6M to the City of Pine Bluff for repairs. By flood claims, Early winter storms: 8 paid, $212K.
Is Pine Bluff at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (48%), and Pine Bluff’s rate for it is lower than 57% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Pine Bluff.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Pine Bluff’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.