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C+Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Bay Harbor Islands · FEMA

Bay Harbor Islands’s building-damage rate from coastal flooding is in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bay Harbor Islands gets a C+ for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 59% of U.S. towns, #83 of 638 in Florida. Most of that expected damage is hurricanes (64%), then river and rain flooding (23%). Flood insurance has paid 39 claims here since 1992.

Hurricanes 64%River and rain flooding 23%Coastal flooding 10%

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

more than 59%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#83 of 638 in Florida
Hazard risk
C+#83 of 638
in Florida · higher than 59% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
Hurricanes
64% of expected building damage
Flood claims
39
paid since 1992 · $1.1M
Flooded more than once
6
properties
Flood insurance
05% off
Community discount (class 9)

What stands out about Bay Harbor Islands’ natural hazards

From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.

05% off flood insuranceFlood-proofing work earns Bay Harbor Islands residents a discount through FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 9).Coastal flooding: the top 2% of U.S. tractsFEMA’s building-damage rate for coastal flooding here ranks in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts; it is 10.3% of the damage it expects.Remembers 201712 flood claims were paid for 2017 alone, the most of any year.
By hazard

What Bay Harbor Islands faces

Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.

Hurricanes

64%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 7% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 3 years in the area

River and rain flooding

23%of expected building damage
Well below average · lower than 96% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 4 times a year in the area

Coastal flooding

10%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Tornadoes Hail Cold waves Strong wind Earthquakes Heat waves Lightning
FEMA models no building damage here
WildfireWinter stormsIce stormsLandslidesAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic 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 Bay Harbor Islands’ grade

Hurricanes are 64% of the building damage FEMA expects in Bay Harbor Islands, and Bay Harbor Islands’ rate of hurricanes damage is in the top 7% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 10%, at a rate in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Bay Harbor Islands sits
Bay Harbor Islands
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C+ #83 of 638 in Florida; higher expected damage per building than 59% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
Hurricanes64%River and rain flooding23%Coastal flooding10%Everything else3%

The typical Florida town has higher expected damage than 79% of U.S. towns; within the state, Bay Harbor Islands has less expected damage per building than 87% of Florida towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.6M a year in losses across Bay Harbor Islands: $1.2M 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 583 aid registrations from Bay Harbor Islands addresses (the town has 2,581 homes) and flood insurance paid 10 claims for $410K.
Shared tract.All of Bay Harbor Islands’ 5,922 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Indian Creek village (84 residents). FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s, the same for all of them. 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 Bay Harbor Islands flood? Sometimes: 39 flood claims since 1992

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Bay Harbor Islands, from FEMA’s records: 15.1 per 1,000 homes, more than 80% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1992: 3 claims1993: 0 claims1994: 4 claims1995: 1 claim1996: 0 claims1997: 0 claims1998: 0 claims1999: 3 claims2000: 1 claim2001: 0 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 0 claims2004: 0 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 0 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 1 claim2014: 0 claims2015: 2 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 12 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 5 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 1 claim2023: 0 claims2024: 6 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims201720192024
19922026
Biggest named events
  • Hurricane Irma10 claims · $410K
  • The June South Florida Flooding6 claims · $275K
  • Hurricane Andrew3 claims · $29K
39
paid claims since 1992
$1.1M
paid to owners
6
homes flooded more than once
$29K
average claim
Homes that flooded again and again
FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (0)Flooded 2+ times
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
Community discount05% off flood insurance

Bay Harbor Islands is in FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 9) for its flood-proofing work.

Insurance rates: Dade County.
Disasters

7 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Bay Harbor Islands

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

  1. 2022Hurricane Ian$199K to the Town of Bay Harbor Islands for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
  2. 2017Hurricane Irma583 households applied for aid$241K aid approved$281K to the Town of Bay Harbor Islands for repairs10 flood claims paid for it, $410K
  3. 2005Hurricane Wilma138 households applied for aid$48K aid approved$199K to the Town of Bay Harbor Islands for repairs
  4. 2005Hurricane Katrina$46K to the Town of Bay Harbor Islands for repairs
  5. 2004Hurricane Frances1 households applied for aid$2K aid approved$21K to the Town of Bay Harbor Islands for repairs
  6. 1999Fl-hurricane Irene-dr-req$17K to the Town of Bay Harbor Islands for repairs2 flood claims paid for it, $12K
Show all 7
  1. 1999Hurricane Floyd Emergency Declarations$2K to the Town of Bay Harbor Islands for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Bay Harbor Islandsits 2 counties only

Its 2 counties have had 32 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 its 2 counties, 1999–2001.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Bay Harbor Islands archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Bay Harbor Islands faces

A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.

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 ↗
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 ↗
When the tide surges
  • Know your evacuation zone and the way off the coast.
  • Storm surge comes fast: leave when you’re told, not when the water arrives.
  • Move cars to high ground before king tides and nor’easters.
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.
  • Bay Harbor Islands residents get 05% off flood insurance.
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 Bay Harbor Islands

Is Bay Harbor Islands at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bay Harbor Islands has higher expected damage per building than 59% of U.S. towns: C+ for hazard risk, #83 of 638 in Florida. Most of the expected damage is hurricanes (64%) and river and rain flooding (23%). 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 Bay Harbor Islands flood?

Flood insurance has paid 39 claims in Bay Harbor Islands since 1992, $1.1M in all, or 15.1 per 1,000 homes, more than 80% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 6 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Hurricane Irma (10).

Is Bay Harbor Islands 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 Dade County, 74% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 33.4% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Bay Harbor Islands?

Bay Harbor Islands is in FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 9), which takes 05% off federal flood insurance policies for its flood-proofing work. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.

What was the biggest storm in Bay Harbor Islands?

By FEMA money that reached Bay Harbor Islands, Hurricane Irma (2017): 583 households applied for aid, $241K approved, and $281K to the Town of Bay Harbor Islands for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Irma: 10 paid, $410K.

Is Bay Harbor Islands at risk from hurricanes?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (64%), and Bay Harbor Islands’ rate for it is in the top 7% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Bay Harbor Islands.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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