Photo: Michel Rathwell from Cornwall, Canada · CC BY 2.0For coastal flooding, Clearwater’s building-damage rate is in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Clearwater gets a B− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 53% of U.S. towns, #50 of 638 in Florida. Most of that expected damage is hurricanes (54%), then river and rain flooding (34%). Flood insurance has paid 2,320 claims here since 1978.
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 stands out about Clearwater’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Clearwater 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
Coastal 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 Clearwater’s grade
Hurricanes are 54% of the building damage FEMA expects in Clearwater, and Clearwater’s rate of hurricanes damage is in the top 10% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 6%, at a rate in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts.
B− #50 of 638 in Florida; higher expected damage per building than 53% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Clearwater’s residents live in 43 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Florida town has higher expected damage than 79% of U.S. towns; within the state, Clearwater has less expected damage per building than 92% of Florida towns.
Among the 400 U.S. cities of 100,000 or more, Clearwater has lower expected damage per building than 56% (#175 of 400). Because it is so big, its total expected yearly loss, $35.1M, is the 324th largest of those 400.
Does Clearwater flood? Yes: 2,320 flood claims since 1978
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Clearwater, from FEMA’s records: 38.0 per 1,000 homes, more than 90% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Hurricane Helene1,169 claims · $192M
- The Blizzard of 1993435 claims · $7.0M
- Hurricane Elena140 claims · $1.2M
Clearwater is in FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 5) for its flood-proofing work.
Insurance rates: Pinellas County.12 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Clearwater
Disasters that paid out in Clearwater itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Clearwater), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2024Hurricane Milton29,191 households applied for aid$27.5M aid approved$7.6M to the City of Clearwater for repairs116 flood claims paid for it, $20.8M
- 2024Hurricane Helene13,338 households applied for aid$18.8M aid approved$6.6M to the City of Clearwater for repairs1,169 flood claims paid for it, $192M
- 2024Hurricane Debby1,308 households applied for aid$1.1M aid approved$725K to the City of Clearwater for repairs
- 2023Hurricane Idalia2,342 households applied for aid$965K aid approved$289K to the City of Clearwater for repairs69 flood claims paid for it, $6.8M
- 2022Hurricane Ian6,825 households applied for aid$2.3M aid approved$1.4M to the City of Clearwater for repairs
- 2017Hurricane Irma27,421 households applied for aid$8.6M aid approved$3.4M to the City of Clearwater for repairs2 flood claims paid that year
Show all 12
- 2016Hurricane Hermine91 households applied for aid$80K aid approved$299K to the City of Clearwater for repairs6 flood claims paid that year
- 2012Tropical Storm Debby230 households applied for aid$287K aid approved$145K to the City of Clearwater for repairs25 flood claims paid that year
- 2004Hurricane Jeanne918 households applied for aid$845K aid approved$1.1M to the City of Clearwater for repairs
- 2004Hurricane Frances386 households applied for aid$321K aid approved$708K to the City of Clearwater for repairs
- 2004Tropical Storm Bonnie and Hurricane Charley$162K to the City of Clearwater for repairs
- 1999Tropical Storm Irene - Florida$2K to the City of Clearwater for repairs12 flood claims paid that year
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 Clearwater after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Clearwater archive →Clearwater and its neighbors
Clearwater is 2nd of the 8 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Belleair | B−more damage than 53% | hurricanes | 183 |
| Clearwater | B−more damage than 53% | hurricanes | 2,320 |
| Greenbriar | C+more damage than 60% | hurricanes | — |
| Largo | C+more damage than 61% | river and rain flooding | 645 |
| Safety Harbor | C+more damage than 64% | hurricanes | 101 |
| Dunedin | Cmore damage than 66% | hurricanes | 1,343 |
| Palm Harbor | Cmore damage than 69% | hurricanes | 1,678 |
| Belleair Beach | Cmore damage than 74% | coastal flooding | 939 |
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 Clearwater 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- Clearwater residents get 25% off flood insurance.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Questions about natural hazards in Clearwater
Is Clearwater at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Clearwater has higher expected damage per building than 53% of U.S. towns: B− for hazard risk, #50 of 638 in Florida. Most of the expected damage is hurricanes (54%) and river and rain flooding (34%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Clearwater flood?
Flood insurance has paid 2,320 claims in Clearwater since 1978, $231M in all, or 38.0 per 1,000 homes, more than 90% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 151 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Hurricane Helene (1,169).
Is Clearwater 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 Clearwater?
Clearwater is in FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 5), which takes 25% 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 Clearwater?
By FEMA money that reached Clearwater, Hurricane Milton (2024): 29,191 households applied for aid, $27.5M approved, and $7.6M to the City of Clearwater for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Helene: 1,169 paid, $192M.
Is Clearwater at risk from hurricanes?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (54%), and Clearwater’s rate for it is in the top 10% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Clearwater.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Clearwater’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.