FEMA expects about as much hazard damage per building in Belleair Bluffs as in the typical U.S. town, mostly from hurricanes
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Belleair Bluffs gets a B for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 56% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is hurricanes (55%), then river and rain flooding (36%). Flood insurance has paid 9 claims here since 1979.
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 Belleair Bluffs faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
Hurricanes
River and rain flooding
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 Belleair Bluffs’ grade
Hurricanes are 55% of the building damage FEMA expects in Belleair Bluffs, and Belleair Bluffs’ rate of hurricanes damage is in the top 10% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 2%, at a rate in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts.
B lower expected damage per building than 56% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Belleair Bluffs’ residents live in 3 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $601K a year in losses across Belleair Bluffs: $431K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Belleair Bluffs flood? Rarely: 9 flood claims since 1979
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Belleair Bluffs, from FEMA’s records: 6.3 per 1,000 homes, more than 65% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- The Blizzard of 19932 claims · $45K
- Hurricane Helene1 claim · $166K
- Hurricane Milton1 claim · $69K
Belleair Bluffs is in FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 7) for its flood-proofing work.
Insurance rates: Pinellas County.9 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Belleair Bluffs
Disasters that paid out in Belleair Bluffs itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Belleair Bluffs), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2024Hurricane Milton198 households applied for aid$189K aid approved1 flood claim paid for it, $69K
- 2024Hurricane Helene87 households applied for aid$44K aid approved1 flood claim paid for it, $166K
- 2023Hurricane Idalia6 households applied for aid$11K aid approved
- 2022Hurricane Ian17 households applied for aid$4K aid approved$14K to the City of Belleair Bluffs for repairs
- 2017Hurricane Irma370 households applied for aid$101K aid approved$214K to the City of Belleair Bluffs for repairs
- 2012Tropical Storm Debby5 households applied for aid$877 aid approved
Show all 9
- 2004Hurricane Jeanne10 households applied for aid$2K aid approved
- 2004Hurricane Frances4 households applied for aid$3K aid approved$16K to the City of Belleair Bluffs for repairs
- 2004Tropical Storm Bonnie and Hurricane Charley$4K to the City of Belleair Bluffs for repairs
Pinellas County has 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 3 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Pinellas County, 1999–2001.
Old photos of Belleair Bluffs after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Belleair Bluffs archive →Belleair Bluffs and its neighbors
Belleair Bluffs 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Belleair Bluffs | Bless damage than 56% | hurricanes | 9 |
| Belleair | B−more damage than 53% | hurricanes | 183 |
| Largo | C+more damage than 61% | river and rain flooding | 645 |
| Harbor Bluffs | C+more damage than 65% | hurricanes | 269 |
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 Belleair Bluffs faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- Belleair Bluffs residents get 15% off flood insurance.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Questions about natural hazards in Belleair Bluffs
Is Belleair Bluffs at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Belleair Bluffs has lower expected damage per building than 56% of U.S. towns: B for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is hurricanes (55%) and river and rain flooding (36%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Belleair Bluffs flood?
Flood insurance has paid 9 claims in Belleair Bluffs since 1979, $363K in all, or 6.3 per 1,000 homes, more than 65% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Blizzard of 1993 (2).
Is Belleair Bluffs 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 Pinellas County, 19.4% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.
How much is flood insurance in Belleair Bluffs?
Belleair Bluffs is in FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 7), which takes 15% 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 Belleair Bluffs?
By FEMA money that reached Belleair Bluffs, Hurricane Irma (2017): 370 households applied for aid, $101K approved, and $214K to the City of Belleair Bluffs for repairs. By flood claims, Blizzard of 1993: 2 paid, $45K.
Is Belleair Bluffs at risk from hurricanes?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (55%), and Belleair Bluffs’ rate for it is in the top 10% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Belleair Bluffs.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Belleair Bluffs’ 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.