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Aerial view of Hernando Beach, FloridaPhoto: Wknight94 talk · CC BY-SA 3.0
C−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Hernando Beach · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, Hernando Beach faces more hazard damage per building than 83% of U.S. towns, led by hurricanes

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Hernando Beach gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 83% of U.S. towns, #361 of 638 in Florida. Most of that expected damage is hurricanes (41%), then coastal flooding (31%). Flood insurance has paid 1,442 claims here since 1979.

Hurricanes 41%Coastal flooding 31%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 83%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#361 of 638 in Florida
Hazard risk
C−#361 of 638
in Florida · higher than 83% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
Hurricanes
41% of expected building damage
Flood claims
1,442
paid since 1979 · $81.0M
Disasters paid out here
8
of 29 declared for Hernando County

What stands out about Hernando Beach’s natural hazards

From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.

1,442 paid flood claims since 1979$81.0M in all. More per home than 100% of U.S. towns.Coastal flooding: the top 1% of U.S. tractsFEMA’s building-damage rate for coastal flooding here ranks in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts; it is 31.2% of the damage it expects.Moved out of harm’s way13 homes raised above flood level with FEMA grants.Remembers 2024526 flood claims were paid for 2024 alone, the most of any year.
By hazard

What Hernando Beach 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 8% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 3 years in the area

Coastal flooding

31%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts

River and rain flooding

20%of expected building damage
Well below average · lower than 91% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Wildfire Tornadoes Strong wind Earthquakes Cold waves Lightning Hail Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
Winter 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 Hernando Beach’s grade

Hurricanes are 41% of the building damage FEMA expects in Hernando Beach, and Hernando Beach’s rate of hurricanes damage is in the top 8% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 31%, at a rate in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Hernando Beach sits
Hernando Beach
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C− #361 of 638 in Florida; higher expected damage per building than 83% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
Hurricanes41%Coastal flooding31%River and rain flooding20%Everything else8%

The typical Florida town has higher expected damage than 79% of U.S. towns; within the state, Hernando Beach has more expected damage per building than 57% of Florida towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.3M a year in losses across Hernando Beach: $1.1M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Recent disaster.FEMA’s model looks at expected damage to the buildings standing today. After Hurricane Helene in 2024, FEMA took 666 aid registrations from Hernando Beach addresses (the town has 1,548 homes) and flood insurance paid 523 claims for $49.0M.
Shared tract.All of Hernando Beach’s 2,452 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 Hernando Beach flood? Yes: 1,442 flood claims since 1979

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Hernando Beach, from FEMA’s records: 931.5 per 1,000 homes, more than 100% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1979: 1 claim1980: 0 claims1981: 0 claims1982: 0 claims1983: 2 claims1984: 0 claims1985: 41 claims1986: 0 claims1987: 0 claims1988: 1 claim1989: 0 claims1990: 0 claims1991: 0 claims1992: 0 claims1993: 516 claims1994: 0 claims1995: 1 claim1996: 106 claims1997: 0 claims1998: 1 claim1999: 0 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 0 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 1 claim2004: 11 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 1 claim2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 0 claims2012: 1 claim2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 94 claims2017: 2 claims2018: 1 claim2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 136 claims2024: 526 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims199320232024
19792026
Biggest named events
  • Hurricane Helene523 claims · $49.0M
  • The Blizzard of 1993508 claims · $16.0M
  • Hurricane Idalia135 claims · $9.5M
1,442
paid claims since 1979
$81.0M
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$56K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Hernando County.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
13homes raised above flood level
Disasters

8 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Hernando Beach

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

  1. 2024Hurricane Milton117 households applied for aid$217K aid approved
  2. 2024Hurricane Helene666 households applied for aid$5.6M aid approved523 flood claims paid for it, $49.0M
  3. 2023Hurricane Idalia156 households applied for aid$620K aid approved135 flood claims paid for it, $9.5M
  4. 2017Hurricane Irma89 households applied for aid$18K aid approved2 flood claims paid that year
  5. 2016Hurricane Hermine39 households applied for aid$56K aid approved94 flood claims paid for it, $4.2M
  6. 2012Tropical Storm Debby7 households applied for aid$719 aid approved1 flood claim paid that year
Show all 8
  1. 2004Hurricane Jeanne41 households applied for aid$18K aid approved
  2. 2004Hurricane Frances43 households applied for aid$33K aid approved
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Hernando BeachHernando County only

Hernando County has had 29 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 1 FEMA wildfire suppression grant (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Hernando County, 2000–2000.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Hernando Beach archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Hernando Beach 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 tide surges
  • 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.
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 Hernando Beach

Is Hernando Beach at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Hernando Beach has higher expected damage per building than 83% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk, #361 of 638 in Florida. Most of the expected damage is hurricanes (41%) and coastal flooding (31%). 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.

Does Hernando Beach flood?

Flood insurance has paid 1,442 claims in Hernando Beach since 1979, $81.0M in all, or 931.5 per 1,000 homes, more than 100% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Hurricane Helene (523).

Is Hernando Beach 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 Hernando County, 54% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 4.8% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Hernando Beach?

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

By FEMA money that reached Hernando Beach, Hurricane Helene (2024): 666 households applied for aid, $5.6M approved. By flood claims, Hurricane Helene: 523 paid, $49.0M.

Is Hernando Beach at risk from hurricanes?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (41%), and Hernando Beach’s rate for it is in the top 8% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Hernando Beach.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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