Photo: Quintin Soloviev · CC BY 4.0For hail, Denver’s building-damage rate is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Denver gets a C+ for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 65% of U.S. towns, #101 of 159 in Colorado. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (50%), then hail (37%). Flood insurance has paid 82 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 Denver’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Denver 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
Hail
Tornadoes
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 Denver’s grade
River and rain flooding is 50% of the building damage FEMA expects in Denver, and Denver’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 53% of U.S. census tracts. Hail adds 37%, at a rate in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.
C+ #101 of 159 in Colorado; higher expected damage per building than 65% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Denver’s residents live in 177 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, Denver has more expected damage per building than 63% of Colorado towns.
Among the 400 U.S. cities of 100,000 or more, Denver has higher expected damage per building than 57% (#228 of 400). Because it is so big, its total expected yearly loss, $221M, is the 37th largest of those 400.
Does Denver flood? Sometimes: 82 flood claims since 1978
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Denver, from FEMA’s records: 0.2 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 97% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Denver isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Denver County.1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Denver
Disasters that paid out in Denver itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Denver), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2013Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides135 households applied for aid$152K aid approved1 flood claim paid that year
Denver County has had 7 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often floods, then winter storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Old photos of Denver after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Denver archive →Denver and its neighbors
Denver is 7th of the 9 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Commerce City | Bless damage than 57% | hail | — |
| Greenwood Village | Bless damage than 56% | hail | 10 |
| Aurora | B−more damage than 50% | hail | 35 |
| Lakewood | B−more damage than 53% | hail | 93 |
| Four Square Mile | C+more damage than 56% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Berkley | C+more damage than 60% | river and rain flooding | 23 |
| Denver | C+more damage than 65% | river and rain flooding | 82 |
| Englewood | Cmore damage than 68% | river and rain flooding | 5 |
| Littleton | Cmore damage than 70% | river and rain flooding | 11 |
| Bow Mar | — | not graded yet | |
| North Washington | — | 294 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 Denver 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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 Denver
Is Denver at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Denver has higher expected damage per building than 65% of U.S. towns: C+ for hazard risk, #101 of 159 in Colorado. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (50%) and hail (37%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Denver flood?
Flood insurance has paid 82 claims in Denver since 1978, $550K in all, or 0.2 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 97% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Is Denver 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 Denver County, 0.4% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.
How much is flood insurance in Denver?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Denver’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 Denver?
By FEMA money that reached Denver, Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides (2013): 135 households applied for aid, $152K approved.
Is Denver at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (50%), and Denver’s rate for it is lower than 53% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Denver.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Denver’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.