Photo: Elisa.rolle · CC BY-SA 4.0FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Buena Vista than in 80% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Buena Vista gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns, #127 of 159 in Colorado. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (95%). Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 1996.
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 Buena Vista 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
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 Buena Vista’s grade
River and rain flooding is 95% of the building damage FEMA expects in Buena Vista, and Buena Vista’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is in the top 10% of U.S. census tracts.
C− #127 of 159 in Colorado; higher expected damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Buena Vista’s residents live in 2 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Colorado town has higher expected damage than 56% of U.S. towns; within the state, Buena Vista has more expected damage per building than 80% of Colorado towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $3.3M a year in losses across Buena Vista: $1.5M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Buena Vista flood? Rarely: 1 flood claim since 1996
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Buena Vista, from FEMA’s records: 0.6 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 87% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Buena Vista isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Chaffee County.The storms Buena Vista remembers
None of the 2 disasters declared for Chaffee County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Buena Vista itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 19961 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
Chaffee County has had 2 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often winter storms, then severe storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Old photos of Buena Vista after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Buena Vista archive →Get ready for what Buena Vista 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.
- 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 Buena Vista
Is Buena Vista at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Buena Vista has higher expected damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk, #127 of 159 in Colorado. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (95%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Buena Vista flood?
Flood insurance has paid 1 claim in Buena Vista since 1996, $1K in all, or 0.6 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 87% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Is Buena Vista 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 Chaffee County, 17% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.7% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Buena Vista?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Buena Vista’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Buena Vista at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (95%), and Buena Vista’s rate for it is in the top 10% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Buena Vista.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Buena Vista’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.