Sulphur Springs Old School Complex Historic District · Photo: Valis55 · CC BY-SA 3.0Storms, floods and disasters in Sulphur Springs
Sulphur Springs isn’t graded for hazard risk: Sulphur Springs has 499 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more.
What Sulphur Springs 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
Wildfire
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 Sulphur Springs flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Sulphur Springs. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Sulphur Springs isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Benton County.6 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Sulphur Springs
Disasters that paid out in Sulphur Springs itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Sulphur Springs), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2017Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding8 households applied for aid$7K aid approved$185K to the City of Sulphur Springs for repairs
- 2015Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding1 households applied for aid$2K to the City of Sulphur Springs for repairs
- 2011Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Associated Flooding3 households applied for aid$5K aid approved
- 2008Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding5 households applied for aid$3K aid approved$115K to the City of Sulphur Springs for repairs
- 2004Severe Storms and Flooding$6K to the City of Sulphur Springs for repairs
- 2000Severe Winter Ice Storm$1K to the City of Sulphur Springs for repairs
Benton 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 Sulphur Springs after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Sulphur Springs archive →Get ready for what Sulphur Springs 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.
- Clear dead leaves and brush within 5 feet of the house.
- Sign up for local alerts and know two ways out.
- Keep N95 masks for smoky days.
- 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 Sulphur Springs
Is Sulphur Springs 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 Benton County, 24% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.4% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Sulphur Springs?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Sulphur Springs’ 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 Sulphur Springs?
By FEMA money that reached Sulphur Springs, Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding (2017): 8 households applied for aid, $7K approved, and $185K to the City of Sulphur Springs for repairs.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Sulphur Springs.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Sulphur Springs’ 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.