On FEMA’s figures, few U.S. towns expect more hazard damage per building than Hawaiian Ocean View, led by earthquakes
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Hawaiian Ocean View gets a D− for hazard risk: among the highest expected damage per building of U.S. towns, #86 of 93 in Hawaii State. Most of that expected damage is earthquakes (44%), then river and rain flooding (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 Hawaiian Ocean View faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
Earthquakes
River and rain flooding
Volcanic 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.
What’s behind Hawaiian Ocean View’s grade
Earthquakes are 44% of the building damage FEMA expects in Hawaiian Ocean View, and Hawaiian Ocean View’s rate of earthquakes damage is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts. River and rain flooding adds 42%, at a rate in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.
D− #86 of 93 in Hawaii State; among the highest expected damage per building of U.S. towns (21,298).
Hawaiian Ocean View’s residents live in 2 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Hawaii State town has higher expected damage than 96% of U.S. towns; within the state, Hawaiian Ocean View has more expected damage per building than 92% of Hawaii State towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $8.1M a year in losses across Hawaiian Ocean View: $6.2M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Hawaiian Ocean View flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Hawaiian Ocean View. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Hawaiian Ocean View isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Hawaii County.The storms Hawaiian Ocean View remembers
None of the 20 disasters declared for Hawaii County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Hawaiian Ocean View itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
Hawaii County has had 20 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then hurricanes and tropical storms.
Also 11 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Hawaii County, 2000–2026.
Get ready for what Hawaiian Ocean View faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- 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.
- Keep N95 masks and goggles for ash.
- Know the evacuation routes.
- Keep ash out of the house and car vents.
- 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 Hawaiian Ocean View
Is Hawaiian Ocean View at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Hawaiian Ocean View has among the highest expected damage per building of U.S. towns: D− for hazard risk, #86 of 93 in Hawaii State. Most of the expected damage is earthquakes (44%) and river and rain flooding (42%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Hawaiian Ocean View 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 Hawaii County, 1.8% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.
How much is flood insurance in Hawaiian Ocean View?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Hawaiian Ocean View’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Hawaiian Ocean View at risk from earthquakes?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (44%), and Hawaiian Ocean View’s rate for it is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Hawaiian Ocean View.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Hawaiian Ocean View’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.