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Clarksville IowaPhoto: Billwhittaker · Public domain
C−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Clarksville · FEMA

More hazard damage per building is expected in Clarksville than in 82% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Clarksville gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 82% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (83%). Flood insurance has paid 12 claims here since 2008.

River and rain flooding 83%Tornadoes 10%Strong wind 4%

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 82%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
C−
in Iowa · higher than 82% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
83% of expected building damage
Flood claims
12
paid since 2008 · $573K
Disasters paid out here
5
of 21 declared for Butler County
By hazard

What Clarksville 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

83%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 88% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 3 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

10%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 8% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 6 years in the area
Smaller shares here
 Strong wind top 4% Hail Winter storms Ice storms Wildfire Earthquakes Heat waves top 1% Lightning Hurricanes Cold waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts drought at 20% of Clarksville’s expected losses. Drought does little damage to buildings (0.0%), so they aren’t part of the grade.

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 Clarksville’s grade

River and rain flooding is 83% of the building damage FEMA expects in Clarksville, and Clarksville’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 88% of U.S. census tracts. Tornadoes add 10%, at a rate in the top 8% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Clarksville sits
Clarksville
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C− higher expected damage per building than 82% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding83%Tornadoes10%Strong wind4%Everything else3%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.7M a year in losses across Clarksville: $915K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Clarksville’s 1,264 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract. FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s. 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 Clarksville flood? Sometimes: 12 flood claims since 2008

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Clarksville, from FEMA’s records: 19.7 per 1,000 homes, more than 84% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
2008: 1 claim2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 0 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 10 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 1 claim2026: 0 claims200820162025
20082026
Biggest named events
  • The Storm1 claim · $29K
12
paid claims since 2008
$573K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$48K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

Clarksville isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Butler County.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
9flood-prone properties bought out and cleared
Disasters

5 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Clarksville

Disasters that paid out in Clarksville itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Clarksville), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.

  1. 2016Severe Storms and Flooding$304K to the City of Clarksville for repairs10 flood claims paid that year
  2. 2014Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding$122K to the City of Clarksville for repairs
  3. 2008Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding187 households applied for aid$1.3M aid approved$96K to the City of Clarksville for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
  4. 2007Severe Winter Storms$6K to the City of Clarksville for repairs
  5. 2004Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding3 households applied for aid$215 aid approved
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in ClarksvilleButler County only

Butler County has had 21 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often floods, then severe storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.

Were you here?

Old photos of Clarksville after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Clarksville archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Clarksville 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 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 ↗
Tornado warnings
  • 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.
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 Clarksville

Is Clarksville at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Clarksville has higher expected damage per building than 82% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (83%) and tornadoes (10%). 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 Clarksville flood?

Flood insurance has paid 12 claims in Clarksville since 2008, $573K in all, or 19.7 per 1,000 homes, more than 84% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Storm (1).

Is Clarksville 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 Butler County, 14% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.4% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Clarksville?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Clarksville’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 Clarksville?

By FEMA money that reached Clarksville, Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding (2008): 187 households applied for aid, $1.3M approved, and $96K to the City of Clarksville for repairs. By flood claims, Storm: 1 paid, $29K.

Is Clarksville at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (83%), and Clarksville’s rate for it is higher than 88% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Clarksville.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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