Palm Cottage Gardens · Photo: (Ebyabe) · CC BY 2.5Gotha’s building-damage rate from strong wind is in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Gotha gets a B− for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 55% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (51%), then hurricanes (26%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.
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 Gotha faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
River and rain flooding
Hurricanes
Strong wind
Tornadoes
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 Gotha’s grade
River and rain flooding is 51% of the building damage FEMA expects in Gotha, and Gotha’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 70% of U.S. census tracts. Strong wind adds 12%, at a rate in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts.
B− lower expected damage per building than 55% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Gotha’s residents live in 3 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $721K a year in losses across Gotha: $582K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Gotha flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Gotha. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Gotha isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Orange County.7 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Gotha
Disasters that paid out in Gotha itself (aid to households or repair grants to Gotha), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2024Hurricane Milton63 households applied for aid$24K aid approved
- 2022Hurricane Ian171 households applied for aid$56K aid approved
- 2017Hurricane Irma439 households applied for aid$136K aid approved
- 2008Tropical Storm Fay1 households applied for aid$12K aid approved
- 2004Hurricane Jeanne105 households applied for aid$35K aid approved
- 2004Hurricane Frances68 households applied for aid$33K aid approved
Show all 7
- 2004Tropical Storm Bonnie and Hurricane Charley49 households applied for aid$24K aid approved
Orange County has had 25 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, then winter 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 Orange County, 1999–2001.
Old photos of Gotha after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Gotha archive →Gotha and its neighbors
Gotha has the lowest expected damage per building of the 3 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gotha | B−less damage than 55% | river and rain flooding | 0 |
| Lake Butler | C+more damage than 57% | river and rain flooding | 13 |
| Ocoee | C+more damage than 62% | river and rain flooding | 17 |
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 Gotha faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- 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.
- 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.
- Trim dead limbs over the house and driveway.
- Tie down trash cans and outdoor furniture.
- Stay clear of downed lines and call the utility.
- Pick your spot now: the lowest floor, an inside room, no windows.
- A watch means be ready; a warning means take cover now.
- Keep shoes and a flashlight by the bed.
- 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 Gotha
Is Gotha at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Gotha has lower expected damage per building than 55% of U.S. towns: B− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (51%) and hurricanes (26%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Gotha 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 Orange County, 44% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 3.3% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Gotha?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Gotha’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 Gotha?
By FEMA money that reached Gotha, Hurricane Irma (2017): 439 households applied for aid, $136K approved.
Is Gotha at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (51%), and Gotha’s rate for it is lower than 70% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Gotha.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Gotha’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.