Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Baldwin

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
B−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Baldwin · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, Baldwin faces about as much hazard damage per building as the typical U.S. town, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Baldwin gets a B− for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 54% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (62%), then hurricanes (28%). Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 2017.

River and rain flooding 62%Hurricanes 28%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

less than 54%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
B−
in Florida · lower than 54% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
62% of expected building damage
Flood claims
1
paid since 2017 · $59K
Disasters paid out here
9
of 27 declared for Duval County
By hazard

What Baldwin 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

62%of expected building damage
About average · lower than 56% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 3 times a year in the area

Hurricanes

28%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 87% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 4 years in the area
Smaller shares here
 Wildfire Tornadoes Hail Earthquakes Strong wind Cold waves Lightning Winter storms Ice storms Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity

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 Baldwin’s grade

River and rain flooding is 62% of the building damage FEMA expects in Baldwin, and Baldwin’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 56% of U.S. census tracts. Wildfire adds 4%, at a rate in the top 9% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Baldwin sits
Baldwin
Least damageMiddleMost damage

B− lower expected damage per building than 54% of U.S. towns (21,298).

All of Baldwin’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding62%Hurricanes28%Wildfire4%Everything else7%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $454K a year in losses across Baldwin: $377K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Recent disaster.FEMA’s model looks at expected damage to the buildings standing today. After Hurricane Irma in 2017, FEMA took 176 aid registrations from Baldwin addresses (the town has 641 homes) and flood insurance paid 1 claims for $59K.
Shared tract.All of Baldwin’s 1,396 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract. FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s. The flood claims below are the town’s own.
A shared figure. The grade describes the whole tract, not each street in it, and FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Baldwin flood? Rarely: 1 flood claim since 2017

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Baldwin, from FEMA’s records: 1.6 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 68% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
2017: 1 claim2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims2017
20172026
Biggest named events
  • Hurricane Irma1 claim · $59K
1
paid claims since 2017
$59K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$59K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Duval County.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
3buildings retrofitted against wind
Disasters

9 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Baldwin

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

  1. 2024Hurricane Helene8 households applied for aid$3K aid approved
  2. 2022Hurricane Ian1 households applied for aid$700 aid approved
  3. 2017Hurricane Irma176 households applied for aid$136K aid approved$9K to the Town of Baldwin for repairs1 flood claim paid for it, $59K
  4. 2016Hurricane Matthew4 households applied for aid$1K aid approved
  5. 2012Tropical Storm Debby6 households applied for aid$5K aid approved$2K to the Town of Baldwin for repairs
  6. 2008Tropical Storm Fay7 households applied for aid$6K aid approved$3K to the Town of Baldwin for repairs
Show all 9
  1. 2004Hurricane Jeanne19 households applied for aid$17K aid approved$2K to the Town of Baldwin for repairs
  2. 2004Hurricane Frances15 households applied for aid$9K aid approved$3K to the Town of Baldwin for repairs
  3. 2004Tropical Storm Bonnie and Hurricane Charley2 households applied for aid$927 aid approved$2K to the Town of Baldwin for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in BaldwinDuval County only

Duval County has had 27 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, 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 Duval County, 1999–2000.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Baldwin archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Baldwin 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 ↗
Hurricane season
  • The season runs June through November and peaks from mid-August to mid-October.
  • Bring in porch furniture and anything the wind can throw.
  • Fill the gas tank and charge phones before the storm arrives.
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 Baldwin

Is Baldwin at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Baldwin has lower expected damage per building than 54% of U.S. towns: B− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (62%) and hurricanes (28%). 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 Baldwin flood?

Flood insurance has paid 1 claim in Baldwin since 2017, $59K in all, or 1.6 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 68% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Hurricane Irma (1).

Is Baldwin 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 Duval County, 60% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 6.3% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Baldwin?

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

By FEMA money that reached Baldwin, Hurricane Irma (2017): 176 households applied for aid, $136K approved, and $9K to the Town of Baldwin for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Irma: 1 paid, $59K.

Is Baldwin at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (62%), and Baldwin’s rate for it is lower than 56% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Baldwin.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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