Menge-Hansen Marine Ways · Photo: Ebyabe · CC BY-SA 3.0On FEMA’s figures, Tice faces more hazard damage per building than 89% of U.S. towns, mostly from hurricanes
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Tice gets a D for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 89% of U.S. towns, #417 of 638 in Florida. Most of that expected damage is hurricanes (75%), then river and rain flooding (20%). Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 2022.
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 Tice faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
Hurricanes
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 Tice’s grade
Hurricanes are 75% of the building damage FEMA expects in Tice, and Tice’s rate of hurricanes damage is in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 3%, at a rate in the top 3% of U.S. census tracts.
D #417 of 638 in Florida; higher expected damage per building than 89% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Tice’s residents live in 3 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, Tice has more expected damage per building than 65% of Florida towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.4M a year in losses across Tice: $1.2M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Tice flood? Rarely: 1 flood claim since 2022
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Tice, from FEMA’s records: 0.6 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 87% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Hurricane Ian1 claim · $63K
Tice 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.4 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Tice
Disasters that paid out in Tice itself (aid to households or repair grants to Tice), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2022Hurricane Ian10 households applied for aid$8K aid approved1 flood claim paid for it, $63K
- 2017Hurricane Irma16 households applied for aid$3K aid approved
- 2005Hurricane Wilma3 households applied for aid$434 aid approved
- 2004Tropical Storm Bonnie and Hurricane Charley4 households applied for aid$4K aid approved
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 Tice after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Tice archive →Tice and its neighbors
Tice has the lowest expected damage per building of the 2 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tice | Dmore damage than 89% | hurricanes | 1 |
| Fort Myers | Dmore damage than 89% | hurricanes | 711 |
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 Tice 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.
- 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 Tice
Is Tice at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Tice has higher expected damage per building than 89% of U.S. towns: D for hazard risk, #417 of 638 in Florida. Most of the expected damage is hurricanes (75%) and river and rain flooding (20%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Tice flood?
Flood insurance has paid 1 claim in Tice since 2022, $63K in all, or 0.6 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 87% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Hurricane Ian (1).
Is Tice 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 Tice?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Tice’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 Tice?
By FEMA money that reached Tice, Hurricane Ian (2022): 10 households applied for aid, $8K approved. By flood claims, Hurricane Ian: 1 paid, $63K.
Is Tice at risk from hurricanes?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (75%), and Tice’s rate for it is in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Tice.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Tice’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.