Photo: Billy Hathorn · CC BY-SA 3.0On FEMA’s figures, Lyons faces more hazard damage per building than 97% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Lyons gets a D− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 97% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (66%), then wildfire (26%). Flood insurance has paid 69 claims here since 1980.
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 Lyons’ natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Lyons 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
Wildfire
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 Lyons’ grade
River and rain flooding is 66% of the building damage FEMA expects in Lyons, and Lyons’ rate of river and rain flooding damage is in the top 3% of U.S. census tracts. Wildfire adds 26%, at a rate in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.
D− higher expected damage per building than 97% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Lyons’ residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $3.9M a year in losses across Lyons: $2.7M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Lyons flood? Sometimes: 69 flood claims since 1980
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Lyons, from FEMA’s records: 90.6 per 1,000 homes, more than 96% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- The Late summer storms63 claims · $4.7M
Lyons isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Boulder County.1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Lyons
Disasters that paid out in Lyons itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Lyons), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2013Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides2,112 households applied for aid$6.3M aid approved$27.3M to the Town of Lyons for repairs64 flood claims paid that year
Boulder County has had 8 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often floods, then severe storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Also 7 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Boulder County, 2000–2024.
Old photos of Lyons after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Lyons archive →Get ready for what Lyons 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.
- 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.
- 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 Lyons
Is Lyons at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Lyons has higher expected damage per building than 97% of U.S. towns: D− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (66%) and wildfire (26%). 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.
Does Lyons flood?
Flood insurance has paid 69 claims in Lyons since 1980, $4.7M in all, or 90.6 per 1,000 homes, more than 96% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Late summer storms (63).
Is Lyons 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 Boulder County, 44% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 2.3% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Lyons?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Lyons’ 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 Lyons?
By FEMA money that reached Lyons, Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides (2013): 2,112 households applied for aid, $6.3M approved, and $27.3M to the Town of Lyons for repairs. By flood claims, Late summer storms: 63 paid, $4.7M.
Is Lyons at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (66%), and Lyons’ rate for it is in the top 3% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Lyons.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Lyons’ 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.