Photo: USFWS Mountain-Prairie · CC BY 2.0FEMA expects less hazard damage per building in Derby than in 72% of U.S. towns, mostly from hail
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Derby gets a B+ for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 72% of U.S. towns, #29 of 159 in Colorado. Most of that expected damage is hail (58%), then river and rain flooding (28%). 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 stands out about Derby’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Derby faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
Hail
River and rain flooding
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 Derby’s grade
Hail is 58% of the building damage FEMA expects in Derby, and Derby’s rate of hail damage is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts. Next is river and rain flooding at 28% (lower than 97% of U.S. census tracts).
B+ #29 of 159 in Colorado; lower expected damage per building than 72% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Derby’s residents live in 3 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, Derby has less expected damage per building than 82% of Colorado towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $2.3M a year in losses across Derby: $1.6M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Derby flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Derby. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Derby isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Adams County.The storms Derby remembers
None of the 8 disasters declared for Adams County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Derby itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
Adams County has had 8 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.
Derby and its neighbors
Derby has the lowest expected damage per building of the 2 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Derby | B+less damage than 72% | hail | 0 |
| Commerce City | Bless damage than 57% | hail | — |
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 Derby faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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 Derby
Is Derby at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Derby has lower expected damage per building than 72% of U.S. towns: B+ for hazard risk, #29 of 159 in Colorado. Most of the expected damage is hail (58%) and river and rain flooding (28%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Derby 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 Adams County, 21% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.2% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Derby?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Derby’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Derby at risk from hail?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (58%), and Derby’s rate for it is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Derby.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Derby’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.