Photo: David Shankbone · CC BY 3.0FEMA puts Cripple Creek’s expected hazard damage per building above that of 86% of U.S. towns, mostly from wildfire
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Cripple Creek gets a D for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 86% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is wildfire (57%), then river and rain flooding (30%). 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 Cripple Creek faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
Wildfire
River and rain flooding
Hail
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 Cripple Creek’s grade
Wildfire is 57% of the building damage FEMA expects in Cripple Creek, and Cripple Creek’s rate of wildfire damage is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts. Hail adds 9%, at a rate in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts.
D higher expected damage per building than 86% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Cripple Creek’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $754K a year in losses across Cripple Creek: $621K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Cripple Creek flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Cripple Creek. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Cripple Creek isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Teller County.2 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Cripple Creek
Disasters that paid out in Cripple Creek itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Cripple Creek), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2012High Park and Waldo Canyon Wildfires$10K to the City of Cripple Creek for repairs
- 2003Snow$18K to the City of Cripple Creek for repairs
Teller County has had 8 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.
Also 2 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Teller County, 2008–2018.
Old photos of Cripple Creek after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Cripple Creek archive →Get ready for what Cripple Creek faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- 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.
- 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.
- Park in a garage or under cover when storms are forecast.
- Stay away from windows while it falls.
- Photograph roof and car damage for your insurer.
- 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 Cripple Creek
Is Cripple Creek at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Cripple Creek has higher expected damage per building than 86% of U.S. towns: D for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is wildfire (57%) and river and rain flooding (30%). The figures are for the one census tract the town shares with its neighbors. This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Cripple Creek 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 Teller County, 24% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.3% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Cripple Creek?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Cripple Creek’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 Cripple Creek?
By FEMA money that reached Cripple Creek, Snow (2003): $18K to the City of Cripple Creek for repairs.
Is Cripple Creek at risk from wildfire?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (57%), and Cripple Creek’s rate for it is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Cripple Creek.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Cripple Creek’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.