For strong wind, Oak Ridge’s building-damage rate is in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Oak Ridge gets a C+ for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 64% of U.S. towns, #112 of 638 in Florida. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (55%), 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 Oak Ridge 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 Oak Ridge’s grade
River and rain flooding is 55% of the building damage FEMA expects in Oak Ridge, and Oak Ridge’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 62% of U.S. census tracts. Strong wind adds 10%, at a rate in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts.
C+ #112 of 638 in Florida; higher expected damage per building than 64% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Oak Ridge’s residents live in 6 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, Oak Ridge has less expected damage per building than 83% of Florida towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $7.1M a year in losses across Oak Ridge: $5.6M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Oak Ridge flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Oak Ridge. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Oak Ridge 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.The storms Oak Ridge remembers
None of the 25 disasters declared for Orange County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Oak Ridge itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
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.
Oak Ridge and its neighbors
Oak Ridge is 2nd of the 2 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Orlando | C+more damage than 60% | river and rain flooding | 312 |
| Oak Ridge | C+more damage than 64% | river and rain flooding | 0 |
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 Oak Ridge 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 Oak Ridge
Is Oak Ridge at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Oak Ridge has higher expected damage per building than 64% of U.S. towns: C+ for hazard risk, #112 of 638 in Florida. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (55%) and hurricanes (26%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Oak Ridge 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 Oak Ridge?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Oak Ridge’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Oak Ridge at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (55%), and Oak Ridge’s rate for it is higher than 62% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Oak Ridge.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Oak Ridge’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.