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NB HCR 597 - Weeki Wachee GardensPhoto: DanTD · CC BY-SA 4.0
D−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Weeki Wachee Gardens · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, Weeki Wachee Gardens faces more hazard damage per building than 95% of U.S. towns, mostly from coastal flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Weeki Wachee Gardens gets a D− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 95% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is coastal flooding (56%), then hurricanes (22%). Flood insurance has paid 281 claims here since 2016.

Coastal flooding 56%Hurricanes 22%River and rain flooding 17%

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 95%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
D−
in Florida · higher than 95% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
Coastal flooding
56% of expected building damage
Flood claims
281
paid since 2016 · $18.2M
Disasters paid out here
1
of 29 declared for Hernando County

What stands out about Weeki Wachee Gardens’ natural hazards

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

281 paid flood claims since 2016$18.2M in all. More per home than 99% 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 56.2% of the damage it expects.Moved out of harm’s way1 flood-prone property bought out and cleared; 1 home raised above flood level with FEMA grants.Remembers 2024181 flood claims were paid for 2024 alone, the most of any year.
By hazard

What Weeki Wachee Gardens faces

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

Coastal flooding

56%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts

Hurricanes

22%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

River and rain flooding

17%of expected building damage
Below average · lower than 66% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Tornadoes Wildfire Strong wind Earthquakes Lightning Hail Cold waves 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 Weeki Wachee Gardens’ grade

Coastal flooding is 56% of the building damage FEMA expects in Weeki Wachee Gardens, and Weeki Wachee Gardens’ rate of coastal flooding damage is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts. Hurricanes add 22%, at a rate in the top 8% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Weeki Wachee Gardens sits
Weeki Wachee Gardens
Least damageMiddleMost damage

D− higher expected damage per building than 95% of U.S. towns (21,298).

All of Weeki Wachee Gardens’ residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.

What drives the damage to buildings
Coastal flooding56%Hurricanes22%River and rain flooding17%Everything else4%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $657K a year in losses across Weeki Wachee Gardens: $538K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Weeki Wachee Gardens’ 1,138 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Bayport CDP (45 residents). FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s, the same for all of them. 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 Weeki Wachee Gardens flood? Yes: 281 flood claims since 2016

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Weeki Wachee Gardens, from FEMA’s records: 289.1 per 1,000 homes, more than 99% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
2016: 20 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 80 claims2024: 181 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims201620232024
20162026
Biggest named events
  • Hurricane Helene176 claims · $12.6M
  • Hurricane Idalia80 claims · $4.8M
  • Hurricane Hermine20 claims · $594K
281
paid claims since 2016
$18.2M
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$65K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

Weeki Wachee Gardens 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
1flood-prone property bought out and cleared
1home raised above flood level
Disasters

1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Weeki Wachee Gardens

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

  1. 2024Hurricane Milton1 households applied for aid$10K aid approved2 flood claims paid for it, $160K
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Weeki Wachee GardensHernando 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 Weeki Wachee Gardens after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Weeki Wachee Gardens archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Weeki Wachee Gardens faces

A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.

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 ↗
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 Weeki Wachee Gardens

Is Weeki Wachee Gardens at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Weeki Wachee Gardens has higher expected damage per building than 95% of U.S. towns: D− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is coastal flooding (56%) and hurricanes (22%). 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 Weeki Wachee Gardens flood?

Flood insurance has paid 281 claims in Weeki Wachee Gardens since 2016, $18.2M in all, or 289.1 per 1,000 homes, more than 99% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Hurricane Helene (176).

Is Weeki Wachee Gardens 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 Weeki Wachee Gardens?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Weeki Wachee Gardens’ 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 Weeki Wachee Gardens?

By FEMA money that reached Weeki Wachee Gardens, Hurricane Milton (2024): 1 households applied for aid, $10K approved. By flood claims, Hurricane Helene: 176 paid, $12.6M.

Is Weeki Wachee Gardens at risk from coastal flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (56%), and Weeki Wachee Gardens’ rate for it is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Weeki Wachee Gardens.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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