Photo: Michael Rivera · CC BY-SA 3.0FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Enigma than in 64% of U.S. towns, led by river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Enigma gets a C+ for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 64% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (49%), then hurricanes (42%). 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 Enigma 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
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 Enigma’s grade
River and rain flooding is 49% of the building damage FEMA expects in Enigma, and Enigma’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 56% of U.S. census tracts. Next is hurricanes at 42% (higher than 90% of U.S. census tracts).
C+ higher expected damage per building than 64% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Enigma’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $506K a year in losses across Enigma: $275K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Enigma flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Enigma. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Enigma isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Berrien County.4 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Enigma
Disasters that paid out in Enigma itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Enigma), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2024Hurricane Helene418 households applied for aid$482K aid approved
- 2023Hurricane Idalia6 households applied for aid$7K aid approved
- 2017Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding3 households applied for aid$1K aid approved
- 2009Severe Storms, Flooding, Tornadoes, and Straight-line Winds7 households applied for aid$10K aid approved
Berrien County has had 13 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.
Old photos of Enigma after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Enigma archive →Get ready for what Enigma 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.
- 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 Enigma
Is Enigma at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Enigma has higher expected damage per building than 64% of U.S. towns: C+ for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (49%) and hurricanes (42%). 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 Enigma 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 Berrien County, 8% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.3% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Enigma?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Enigma’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 Enigma?
By FEMA money that reached Enigma, Hurricane Helene (2024): 418 households applied for aid, $482K approved.
Is Enigma at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (49%), and Enigma’s rate for it is lower than 56% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Enigma.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Enigma’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.