Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Granby

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
Granby, CO, Town Hall IMG 5402Photo: Billy Hathorn · CC BY-SA 3.0
CHazard risk
Natural hazards in Granby · FEMA

FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Granby than in 70% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Granby gets a C for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 70% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (84%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

River and rain flooding 84%Hail 6%Wildfire 4%

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

more than 70%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
C
in Colorado · higher than 70% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
84% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
1
of 4 declared for Grand County
By hazard

What Granby 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

84%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 81% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 2 years in the area

Hail

6%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 89% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 3 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Wildfire Tornadoes Earthquakes Strong wind Landslides top 2% Winter storms Ice storms Cold waves Lightning Avalanches top 0% Volcanic activity
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingHurricanesHeat wavesTsunamis
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts avalanches at 64% of Granby’s expected losses. Avalanches do little damage to buildings (0.0%), so they aren’t part of the grade.

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.

Flood risk changes street by street. Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.
Hazard risk grade

What’s behind Granby’s grade

River and rain flooding is 84% of the building damage FEMA expects in Granby, and Granby’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 81% of U.S. census tracts. Wildfire adds 4%, at a rate in the top 7% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Granby sits
Granby
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C higher expected damage per building than 70% of U.S. towns (21,298).

Granby’s residents live in 2 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding84%Hail6%Wildfire4%Everything else6%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $4.4M a year in losses across Granby: $1.4M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

A small-area figure. Granby covers 2 census tracts, combined by where residents live. FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims and disasters below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Granby flood? No paid flood claims on record

FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Granby. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.

of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

Granby isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Grand County.
Disasters

1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Granby

Disasters that paid out in Granby itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Granby), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.

  1. 2003Snow$3K to the Town of Granby for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in GranbyGrand County only

Grand County has had 4 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then winter 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 Grand County, 2020–2020.

Were you here?

Old photos of Granby after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Granby archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Granby faces

A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.

When the river rises
  • 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.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Hail
  • 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.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Before you buy or rent
  • 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.
When a storm is coming
Forecast and alertsWeather →911, the nearest ERSafety →

Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.

Questions about natural hazards in Granby

Is Granby at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Granby has higher expected damage per building than 70% of U.S. towns: C for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (84%) and hail (6%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Is Granby 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 Grand County, 10% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.2% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Granby?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Granby’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 Granby?

By FEMA money that reached Granby, Snow (2003): $3K to the Town of Granby for repairs.

Is Granby at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (84%), and Granby’s rate for it is higher than 81% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Granby.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Granby’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.