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Bowling green1Photo: Indietop20 · Public domain
D−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Bowling Green · FEMA

FEMA puts Bowling Green’s expected hazard damage per building above that of 98% of U.S. towns, led by strong wind

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bowling Green gets a D− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is strong wind (40%), then hurricanes (36%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

Strong wind 40%Hurricanes 36%River and rain flooding 20%

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
Hazard risk
D−
in Florida · higher than 98% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
Strong wind
40% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
6
of 24 declared for Hardee County
By hazard

What Bowling Green faces

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

Strong wind

40%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area

Hurricanes

36%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 4 years in the area

River and rain flooding

20%of expected building damage
About average · higher than 58% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 1 years in the area
Smaller shares here
 Tornadoes Wildfire Cold waves top 0% Lightning Hail Earthquakes Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingWinter 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. 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 Bowling Green’s grade

Strong wind is 40% of the building damage FEMA expects in Bowling Green, and Bowling Green’s rate of strong wind damage is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts. Hurricanes add 36%, at a rate in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Bowling Green sits
Bowling Green
Least damageMiddleMost damage

D− higher expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
Strong wind40%Hurricanes36%River and rain flooding20%Everything else4%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $2.3M a year in losses across Bowling Green: $2.0M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Recent disaster.FEMA’s model looks at expected damage to the buildings standing today. After Hurricane Ian in 2022, FEMA took 886 aid registrations from Bowling Green addresses (the town has 908 homes).
Shared tract.All of Bowling Green’s 2,405 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 Bowling Green flood? No paid flood claims on record

FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Bowling Green. 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

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

Insurance rates: Hardee County.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
1building retrofitted against wind
1storm safe room built
Disasters

6 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Bowling Green

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

  1. 2024Hurricane Milton529 households applied for aid$322K aid approved$39K to the City of Bowling Green for repairs
  2. 2022Hurricane Ian886 households applied for aid$1.6M aid approved$156K to the City of Bowling Green for repairs
  3. 2017Hurricane Irma817 households applied for aid$467K aid approved$67K to the City of Bowling Green for repairs
  4. 2004Hurricane Jeanne285 households applied for aid$637K aid approved$9K to the City of Bowling Green for repairs
  5. 2004Hurricane Frances163 households applied for aid$505K aid approved
  6. 2004Tropical Storm Bonnie and Hurricane Charley1,051 households applied for aid$1.7M aid approved$146K to the City of Bowling Green for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Bowling GreenHardee County only

Hardee County has had 24 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 Hardee County, 1999–2001.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Bowling Green archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Bowling Green faces

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

High winds
  • Trim dead limbs over the house and driveway.
  • Tie down trash cans and outdoor furniture.
  • Stay clear of downed lines and call the utility.
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 ↗
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 ↗
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 Bowling Green

Is Bowling Green at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bowling Green has higher expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns: D− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is strong wind (40%) and hurricanes (36%). 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 Bowling Green 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 Hardee County, 15% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.3% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Bowling Green?

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

By FEMA money that reached Bowling Green, Tropical Storm Bonnie and Hurricane Charley (2004): 1,051 households applied for aid, $1.7M approved, and $146K to the City of Bowling Green for repairs.

Is Bowling Green at risk from strong wind?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (40%), and Bowling Green’s rate for it is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Bowling Green.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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