Photo: Rivers Langley; SaveRivers · CC BY-SA 3.0FEMA puts Buena Vista’s expected hazard damage per building below that of 92% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Buena Vista gets an A for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 92% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (67%), then tornadoes (12%). 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 Buena Vista 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
Tornadoes
Hurricanes
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 Buena Vista’s grade
River and rain flooding is 67% of the building damage FEMA expects in Buena Vista, and Buena Vista’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 84% of U.S. census tracts. Next is tornadoes at 12% (higher than 66% of U.S. census tracts).
A lower expected damage per building than 92% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Buena Vista’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $478K a year in losses across Buena Vista: $257K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Buena Vista flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Buena Vista. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Buena Vista isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Marion County.1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Buena Vista
Disasters that paid out in Buena Vista itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Buena Vista), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2017Hurricane Irma$975 to the City of Buena Vista for repairs
Marion County has had 8 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then hurricanes and tropical storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Old photos of Buena Vista after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Buena Vista archive →Get ready for what Buena Vista 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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 Buena Vista
Is Buena Vista at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Buena Vista has lower expected damage per building than 92% of U.S. towns: A for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (67%) and tornadoes (12%). 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.
Is Buena Vista 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 Marion County, 7% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.0% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Buena Vista?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Buena Vista’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 Buena Vista?
By FEMA money that reached Buena Vista, Hurricane Irma (2017): $975 to the City of Buena Vista for repairs.
Is Buena Vista at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (67%), and Buena Vista’s rate for it is lower than 84% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Buena Vista.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Buena Vista’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.