Photo: Elnogalense · CC BY-SA 4.0FEMA puts Rio Rico’s expected hazard damage per building above that of 89% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Rio Rico gets a D for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 89% of U.S. towns, #105 of 140 in Arizona. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (58%), then wildfire (41%). 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 Rio Rico 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
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.
What’s behind Rio Rico’s grade
River and rain flooding is 58% of the building damage FEMA expects in Rio Rico, and Rio Rico’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 87% of U.S. census tracts. Wildfire adds 41%, at a rate in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.
D #105 of 140 in Arizona; higher expected damage per building than 89% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Rio Rico’s residents live in 7 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Arizona town has higher expected damage than 78% of U.S. towns; within the state, Rio Rico has more expected damage per building than 75% of Arizona towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $15.1M a year in losses across Rio Rico: $6.9M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Rio Rico flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Rio Rico. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Rio Rico isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Santa Cruz County.The storms Rio Rico remembers
None of the 4 disasters declared for Santa Cruz County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Rio Rico itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
Santa Cruz County has had 4 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often floods, then severe storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Also 1 FEMA wildfire suppression grant (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Santa Cruz County, 2002–2002.
Rio Rico and its neighbors
Rio Rico has the lowest expected damage per building of the 1 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rio Rico | Dmore damage than 89% | river and rain flooding | 0 |
| Tumacacori-Carmen | — | 207 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
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 Rio Rico 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.
- 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 Rio Rico
Is Rio Rico at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Rio Rico has higher expected damage per building than 89% of U.S. towns: D for hazard risk, #105 of 140 in Arizona. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (58%) and wildfire (41%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Rio Rico 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 Santa Cruz County, 12% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.8% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Rio Rico?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Rio Rico’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Rio Rico at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (58%), and Rio Rico’s rate for it is higher than 87% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Rio Rico.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Rio Rico’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.