FEMA puts Punta Rassa’s expected hazard damage per building above that of 94% of U.S. towns, mostly from hurricanes
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Punta Rassa gets a D for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 94% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is hurricanes (75%), then coastal flooding (16%). Flood insurance has paid 393 claims here since 1988.
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 stands out about Punta Rassa’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Punta Rassa faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
Hurricanes
Coastal flooding
River and rain flooding
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 Punta Rassa’s grade
Hurricanes are 75% of the building damage FEMA expects in Punta Rassa, and Punta Rassa’s rate of hurricanes damage is in the top 3% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 16%, at a rate in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.
D higher expected damage per building than 94% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Punta Rassa’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $774K a year in losses across Punta Rassa: $677K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Punta Rassa flood? Yes: 393 flood claims since 1988
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Punta Rassa, from FEMA’s records: 277.2 per 1,000 homes, more than 99% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Hurricane Ian363 claims · $53.7M
- Hurricane Milton9 claims · $471K
- The Torrential rain7 claims · $96K
Punta Rassa isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Lee County.The storms Punta Rassa remembers
None of the 30 disasters declared for Lee County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Punta Rassa itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 2022364 flood claims paidThe year of Hurricane Nicole, declared for Lee County
- 202414 flood claims paidThe year of Hurricane Milton, declared for Lee County
- 20017 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms, Tornadoes and Flooding Associated with Tropical Storm Gabrielle, declared for Lee County
Lee County has had 30 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 4 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Lee County, 1999–2017.
Old photos of Punta Rassa after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Punta Rassa archive →Punta Rassa and its neighbors
Punta Rassa 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Iona | Dmore damage than 93% | hurricanes | 1,697 |
| Punta Rassa | Dmore damage than 94% | hurricanes | 393 |
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 Punta Rassa faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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 Punta Rassa
Is Punta Rassa at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Punta Rassa has higher expected damage per building than 94% of U.S. towns: D for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is hurricanes (75%) and coastal flooding (16%). 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 Punta Rassa flood?
Flood insurance has paid 393 claims in Punta Rassa since 1988, $54.9M in all, or 277.2 per 1,000 homes, more than 99% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Hurricane Ian (363).
Is Punta Rassa 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 Lee County, 47% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 24.2% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Punta Rassa?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Punta Rassa’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 Punta Rassa?
By flood claims, Hurricane Ian: 363 paid, $53.7M.
Is Punta Rassa at risk from hurricanes?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (75%), and Punta Rassa’s rate for it is in the top 3% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Punta Rassa.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Punta Rassa’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.