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Hawthorne, Florida, City Hall 2018Photo: PopularOutcast · CC BY-SA 4.0
CHazard risk
Natural hazards in Hawthorne · FEMA

FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Hawthorne than in 69% of U.S. towns, led by hurricanes

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Hawthorne gets a C for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 69% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is hurricanes (41%), then river and rain flooding (41%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

Hurricanes 41%River and rain flooding 41%Wildfire 12%

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 69%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
C
in Florida · higher than 69% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
Hurricanes
41% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
11
of 21 declared for Alachua County
By hazard

What Hawthorne faces

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

Hurricanes

41%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 10% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 5 years in the area

River and rain flooding

41%of expected building damage
Below average · lower than 65% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area

Wildfire

12%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Tornadoes Strong wind Earthquakes Lightning Hail Winter storms Cold waves Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingIce 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 Hawthorne’s grade

Hurricanes are 41% of the building damage FEMA expects in Hawthorne, and Hawthorne’s rate of hurricanes damage is in the top 10% of U.S. census tracts. Wildfire adds 12%, at a rate in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Hawthorne sits
Hawthorne
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C higher expected damage per building than 69% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
Hurricanes41%River and rain flooding41%Wildfire12%Everything else6%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $493K a year in losses across Hawthorne: $378K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Recent disaster.FEMA’s model looks at expected damage to the buildings standing today. After Hurricane Irma in 2017, FEMA took 1,915 aid registrations from Hawthorne addresses (the town has 679 homes).
Shared tract.All of Hawthorne’s 1,478 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 Hawthorne flood? No paid flood claims on record

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

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

Insurance rates: Alachua County.
Disasters

11 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Hawthorne

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

  1. 2024Hurricane Milton105 households applied for aid$249K aid approved
  2. 2024Hurricane Helene293 households applied for aid$545K aid approved
  3. 2024Hurricane Debby112 households applied for aid$261K aid approved
  4. 2023Hurricane Idalia$12K to the City of Hawthorne for repairs
  5. 2022Hurricane Nicole7 households applied for aid$4K aid approved
  6. 2022Hurricane Ian80 households applied for aid$44K aid approved
Show all 11
  1. 2017Hurricane Irma1,915 households applied for aid$1.1M aid approved$166K to the City of Hawthorne for repairs
  2. 2016Hurricane Matthew16 households applied for aid$12K aid approved
  3. 2008Tropical Storm Fay8 households applied for aid$4K aid approved
  4. 2004Hurricane Jeanne449 households applied for aid$468K aid approved$88K to the City of Hawthorne for repairs
  5. 2004Hurricane Frances629 households applied for aid$693K aid approved$62K to the City of Hawthorne for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in HawthorneAlachua County only

Alachua County has had 21 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 Alachua County, 1999–2007.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Hawthorne archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Hawthorne 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 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 ↗
Wildfire
  • Clear dead leaves and brush within 5 feet of the house.
  • Sign up for local alerts and know two ways out.
  • Keep N95 masks for smoky days.
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 Hawthorne

Is Hawthorne at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Hawthorne has higher expected damage per building than 69% of U.S. towns: C for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is hurricanes (41%) and river and rain flooding (41%). 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 Hawthorne 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 Alachua County, 18% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 2.5% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Hawthorne?

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

By FEMA money that reached Hawthorne, Hurricane Irma (2017): 1,915 households applied for aid, $1.1M approved, and $166K to the City of Hawthorne for repairs.

Is Hawthorne at risk from hurricanes?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (41%), and Hawthorne’s rate for it is in the top 10% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Hawthorne.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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