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Big Coppitt Key 2Photo: LittleT889 · CC BY-SA 4.0
D−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Big Coppitt Key · FEMA

FEMA puts Big Coppitt Key’s expected hazard damage per building above that of 98% of U.S. towns, mostly from hurricanes

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Big Coppitt Key gets a D− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns, #632 of 638 in Florida. Most of that expected damage is hurricanes (67%), then coastal flooding (29%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

Hurricanes 67%Coastal flooding 29%River and rain flooding 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

more than 98%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#632 of 638 in Florida
Hazard risk
D−#632 of 638
in Florida · higher than 98% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
Hurricanes
67% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
1
of 35 declared for Monroe County

What stands out about Big Coppitt Key’s natural hazards

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

Coastal flooding: the top 1% of U.S. tractsFEMA’s building-damage rate for coastal flooding here ranks in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts; it is 28.7% of the damage it expects.Made safer with FEMA grants1 building retrofitted against wind with FEMA grants.
By hazard

What Big Coppitt Key faces

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

Hurricanes

67%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 4 years in the area

Coastal flooding

29%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 River and rain flooding Tornadoes Hail Strong wind Earthquakes Wildfire Cold waves Heat waves Landslides Lightning
FEMA models no building damage here
Winter stormsIce stormsAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic 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. 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 Big Coppitt Key’s grade

Hurricanes are 67% of the building damage FEMA expects in Big Coppitt Key, and Big Coppitt Key’s rate of hurricanes damage is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 29%, at a rate in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Big Coppitt Key sits
Big Coppitt Key
Least damageMiddleMost damage

D− #632 of 638 in Florida; higher expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
Hurricanes67%Coastal flooding29%River and rain flooding4%

The typical Florida town has higher expected damage than 79% of U.S. towns; within the state, Big Coppitt Key has more expected damage per building than 99% of Florida towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $3.3M a year in losses across Big Coppitt Key: $3.1M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Big Coppitt Key’s 2,869 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 Big Coppitt Key flood? No paid flood claims on record

FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Big Coppitt Key. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.

of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Monroe County.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
1building retrofitted against wind
Disasters

1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Big Coppitt Key

Disasters that paid out in Big Coppitt Key itself (aid to households or repair grants to Big Coppitt Key), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.

  1. 2017Hurricane Irma43 households applied for aid$38K aid approved
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Big Coppitt KeyMonroe County only

Monroe County has had 35 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 Monroe County, 1999–2001.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Big Coppitt Key archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Big Coppitt Key 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 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.
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 Big Coppitt Key

Is Big Coppitt Key at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Big Coppitt Key has higher expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns: D− for hazard risk, #632 of 638 in Florida. Most of the expected damage is hurricanes (67%) and coastal flooding (29%). 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 Big Coppitt Key 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 Monroe County, 61% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 58.2% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Big Coppitt Key?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Big Coppitt Key’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 Big Coppitt Key?

By FEMA money that reached Big Coppitt Key, Hurricane Irma (2017): 43 households applied for aid, $38K approved.

Is Big Coppitt Key at risk from hurricanes?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (67%), and Big Coppitt Key’s rate for it is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Big Coppitt Key.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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