Less hazard damage per building is expected in Shaw Heights than in 68% of U.S. towns, mostly from hail
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Shaw Heights gets a B+ for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 68% of U.S. towns, #37 of 159 in Colorado. Most of that expected damage is hail (54%), then river and rain flooding (34%). 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 Shaw Heights’ natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Shaw Heights 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 Shaw Heights’ grade
Hail is 54% of the building damage FEMA expects in Shaw Heights, and Shaw Heights’ rate of hail damage is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts. Next is river and rain flooding at 34% (lower than 94% of U.S. census tracts).
B+ #37 of 159 in Colorado; lower expected damage per building than 68% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Shaw Heights’ residents live in 2 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, Shaw Heights has less expected damage per building than 77% of Colorado towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $956K a year in losses across Shaw Heights: $569K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Shaw Heights flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Shaw Heights. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Shaw Heights 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 Shaw Heights remembers
None of the 8 disasters declared for Adams County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Shaw Heights 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.
Shaw Heights and its neighbors
Shaw Heights 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shaw Heights | B+less damage than 68% | hail | 0 |
| Westminster | B+less damage than 65% | hail | 24 |
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 Shaw Heights 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 Shaw Heights
Is Shaw Heights at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Shaw Heights has lower expected damage per building than 68% of U.S. towns: B+ for hazard risk, #37 of 159 in Colorado. Most of the expected damage is hail (54%) and river and rain flooding (34%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Shaw Heights 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 Shaw Heights?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Shaw Heights’ flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Shaw Heights at risk from hail?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (54%), and Shaw Heights’ rate for it is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Shaw Heights.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Shaw Heights’ 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.