Photo: Jeffrey Beall · CC BY 4.0Storms, floods and disasters in Silver Cliff
Silver Cliff isn’t graded for hazard risk: Silver Cliff has 863 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more.
What Silver Cliff 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.
Does Silver Cliff flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Silver Cliff. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
2 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Silver Cliff
Disasters that paid out in Silver Cliff itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Silver Cliff), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2006Snow$2K to the Town of Silver Cliff for repairs
- 2003Snow$4K to the Town of Silver Cliff for repairs
Custer County has had 5 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 6 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Custer County, 2002–2026.
Old photos of Silver Cliff after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Silver Cliff archive →Silver Cliff and its neighbors
How expected damage per building compares across the town line. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Westcliffe | — | 419 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 Silver Cliff 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 Silver Cliff
Is Silver Cliff 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.
How much is flood insurance in Silver Cliff?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Silver Cliff’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 Silver Cliff?
By FEMA money that reached Silver Cliff, Snow (2003): $4K to the Town of Silver Cliff for repairs.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Silver Cliff.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Silver Cliff’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.