FEMA expects about as much hazard damage per building in Stepping Stone as in the typical U.S. town, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Stepping Stone gets a B− for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 54% of U.S. towns, #58 of 159 in Colorado. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (59%), then hail (15%). 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 Stepping Stone 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
Hail
Tornadoes
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 Stepping Stone’s grade
River and rain flooding is 59% of the building damage FEMA expects in Stepping Stone, and Stepping Stone’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 59% of U.S. census tracts. Hail adds 15%, at a rate in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts.
B− #58 of 159 in Colorado; lower expected damage per building than 54% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Stepping Stone’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
The typical Colorado town has higher expected damage than 56% of U.S. towns; within the state, Stepping Stone has less expected damage per building than 64% of Colorado towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $806K a year in losses across Stepping Stone: $648K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Stepping Stone flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Stepping Stone. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Stepping Stone isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Douglas County.The storms Stepping Stone remembers
None of the 8 disasters declared for Douglas County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Stepping Stone itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
Douglas 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 2 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Douglas County, 2002–2003.
Stepping Stone and its neighbors
Stepping Stone has the lowest expected damage per building of the 4 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stepping Stone | B−less damage than 54% | river and rain flooding | 0 |
| Parker | C+more damage than 56% | river and rain flooding | 2 |
| Meridian Village | C+more damage than 64% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Sierra Ridge | Cmore damage than 72% | river and rain flooding | — |
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 Stepping Stone 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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 Stepping Stone
Is Stepping Stone at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Stepping Stone has lower expected damage per building than 54% of U.S. towns: B− for hazard risk, #58 of 159 in Colorado. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (59%) and hail (15%). 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.
Is Stepping Stone 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 Douglas County, 20% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.3% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Stepping Stone?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Stepping Stone’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Stepping Stone at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (59%), and Stepping Stone’s rate for it is lower than 59% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Stepping Stone.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Stepping Stone’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.