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Immokalee-Zocalo Plaza 2018Photo: Declan M Martin · Public domain
DHazard risk
Natural hazards in Immokalee · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, Immokalee faces more hazard damage per building than 93% of U.S. towns, mostly from hurricanes

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Immokalee gets a D for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 93% of U.S. towns, #532 of 638 in Florida. Most of that expected damage is hurricanes (72%), then river and rain flooding (24%). Flood insurance has paid 2 claims here since 2017.

Hurricanes 72%River and rain flooding 24%Wildfire 2%

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 93%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#532 of 638 in Florida
Hazard risk
D#532 of 638
in Florida · higher than 93% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
Hurricanes
72% of expected building damage
Flood claims
2
paid since 2017 · $10K
Disasters paid out here
10
of 36 declared for Collier County
By hazard

What Immokalee faces

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

Hurricanes

72%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 4 years in the area

River and rain flooding

24%of expected building damage
About average · higher than 54% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Wildfire Cold waves top 0% Tornadoes Strong wind Lightning Coastal flooding Hail Earthquakes Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
Winter stormsIce stormsAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 54% of Immokalee’s expected losses. Cold waves do little damage to buildings (0.9%), so they aren’t part of the grade.

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 Immokalee’s grade

Hurricanes are 72% of the building damage FEMA expects in Immokalee, and Immokalee’s rate of hurricanes damage is in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts. Wildfire adds 2%, at a rate in the top 7% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Immokalee sits
Immokalee
Least damageMiddleMost damage

D #532 of 638 in Florida; higher expected damage per building than 93% of U.S. towns (21,298).

Immokalee’s residents live in 8 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.

What drives the damage to buildings
Hurricanes72%River and rain flooding24%Everything else4%

The typical Florida town has higher expected damage than 79% of U.S. towns; within the state, Immokalee has more expected damage per building than 83% of Florida towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $28.0M a year in losses across Immokalee: $9.1M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Recent disaster.FEMA’s model looks at expected damage to the buildings standing today. After Hurricane Irma in 2017, FEMA took 5,385 aid registrations from Immokalee addresses (the town has 7,336 homes) and flood insurance paid 2 claims for $10K.
A firm figure. It combines 8 census tracts by where Immokalee’s residents live. FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims and disasters below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Immokalee flood? Rarely: 2 flood claims since 2017

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Immokalee, from FEMA’s records: 0.3 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 95% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
2017: 2 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims2017
20172026
Biggest named events
  • Hurricane Irma2 claims · $10K
2
paid claims since 2017
$10K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$5K
average claim
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Collier County.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
4buildings retrofitted against wind
Disasters

10 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Immokalee

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

  1. 2024Hurricane Milton592 households applied for aid$160K aid approved
  2. 2024Hurricane Helene64 households applied for aid$47K aid approved
  3. 2022Hurricane Ian2,705 households applied for aid$1.4M aid approved
  4. 2017Hurricane Irma5,385 households applied for aid$3.6M aid approved2 flood claims paid for it, $10K
  5. 2008Tropical Storm Fay28 households applied for aid$24K aid approved
  6. 2005Hurricane Wilma1,560 households applied for aid$1.8M aid approved
Show all 10
  1. 2004Hurricane Jeanne3 households applied for aid$8K aid approved
  2. 2004Hurricane Frances4 households applied for aid$11K aid approved
  3. 2004Tropical Storm Bonnie and Hurricane Charley38 households applied for aid$84K aid approved
  4. 59 households applied for aid$3K aid approved
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in ImmokaleeCollier County only

Collier County has had 36 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 7 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Collier County, 1999–2020.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Immokalee archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Immokalee 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 ↗
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 Immokalee

Is Immokalee at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Immokalee has higher expected damage per building than 93% of U.S. towns: D for hazard risk, #532 of 638 in Florida. Most of the expected damage is hurricanes (72%) and river and rain flooding (24%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Does Immokalee flood?

Flood insurance has paid 2 claims in Immokalee since 2017, $10K in all, or 0.3 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 95% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Hurricane Irma (2).

Is Immokalee 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 Collier County, 29.6% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.

How much is flood insurance in Immokalee?

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

By FEMA money that reached Immokalee, Hurricane Irma (2017): 5,385 households applied for aid, $3.6M approved. By flood claims, Hurricane Irma: 2 paid, $10K.

Is Immokalee at risk from hurricanes?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (72%), and Immokalee’s rate for it is in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Immokalee.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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