Cortez Historic District · Photo: Ebyabe · CC BY-SA 3.0FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Cortez than in 92% of U.S. towns, mostly from hurricanes
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Cortez gets a D for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 92% of U.S. towns, #510 of 638 in Florida. Most of that expected damage is hurricanes (58%), then coastal flooding (26%). Flood insurance has paid 364 claims here since 1981.
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 Cortez’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Cortez faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
Hurricanes
Coastal flooding
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 Cortez’s grade
Hurricanes are 58% of the building damage FEMA expects in Cortez, and Cortez’s rate of hurricanes damage is in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 26%, at a rate in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.
D #510 of 638 in Florida; higher expected damage per building than 92% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Cortez’s residents live in 2 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, Cortez has more expected damage per building than 80% of Florida towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $3.1M a year in losses across Cortez: $2.6M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Cortez flood? Yes: 364 flood claims since 1981
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Cortez, from FEMA’s records: 89.4 per 1,000 homes, more than 96% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Hurricane Helene265 claims · $27.0M
- Hurricane Josephine16 claims · $139K
- Hurricane Idalia13 claims · $334K
Cortez isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Manatee County.7 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Cortez
Disasters that paid out in Cortez itself (aid to households or repair grants to Cortez), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2024Hurricane Milton122 households applied for aid$309K aid approved10 flood claims paid for it, $473K
- 2024Hurricane Helene216 households applied for aid$2.5M aid approved265 flood claims paid for it, $27.0M
- 2023Hurricane Idalia12 households applied for aid$26K aid approved13 flood claims paid for it, $334K
- 2022Hurricane Ian28 households applied for aid$15K aid approved
- 2017Hurricane Irma44 households applied for aid$6K aid approved
- 2004Hurricane Jeanne1 households applied for aid$5K aid approved
Show all 7
- 2004Hurricane Frances1 households applied for aid$954 aid approved
Manatee County has had 37 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 Manatee County, 1999–2001.
Old photos of Cortez after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Cortez archive →Cortez and its neighbors
Cortez has the lowest expected damage per building of the 1 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cortez | Dmore damage than 92% | hurricanes | 364 |
| Bradenton Beach | — | 733 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
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 Cortez 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.
- 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.
- 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.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Questions about natural hazards in Cortez
Is Cortez at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Cortez has higher expected damage per building than 92% of U.S. towns: D for hazard risk, #510 of 638 in Florida. Most of the expected damage is hurricanes (58%) and coastal flooding (26%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Cortez flood?
Flood insurance has paid 364 claims in Cortez since 1981, $28.7M in all, or 89.4 per 1,000 homes, more than 96% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Hurricane Helene (265).
Is Cortez 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 Manatee County, 43% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 17.3% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Cortez?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Cortez’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 Cortez?
By FEMA money that reached Cortez, Hurricane Helene (2024): 216 households applied for aid, $2.5M approved. By flood claims, Hurricane Helene: 265 paid, $27.0M.
Is Cortez at risk from hurricanes?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (58%), and Cortez’s rate for it is in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Cortez.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Cortez’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.