Photo: PopePompus · CC BY-SA 4.0On FEMA’s figures, Saylorville faces less hazard damage per building than 93% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Saylorville gets an A for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 93% of U.S. towns, #1 of 140 in Iowa. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (53%), then tornadoes (28%). 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 Saylorville 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
Strong wind
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 Saylorville’s grade
River and rain flooding is 53% of the building damage FEMA expects in Saylorville, and Saylorville’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 91% of U.S. census tracts. Tornadoes add 28%, at a rate in the top 10% of U.S. census tracts.
A #1 of 140 in Iowa; lower expected damage per building than 93% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Saylorville’s residents live in 3 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Iowa town has lower expected damage than 57% of U.S. towns; within the state, Saylorville has less expected damage per building than 100% of Iowa towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.1M a year in losses across Saylorville: $741K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Saylorville flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Saylorville. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Saylorville isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Polk County.The storms Saylorville remembers
None of the 18 disasters declared for Polk County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Saylorville itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
Polk County has had 18 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then floods. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Saylorville and its neighbors
Saylorville has the lowest expected damage per building of the 2 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saylorville | Aless damage than 93% | river and rain flooding | 0 |
| Ankeny | B+less damage than 68% | river and rain flooding | 21 |
Hazard risk = FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade; the map is shaded by fifths of the same scale. Flood claims = paid federal flood insurance claims on record.
Get ready for what Saylorville 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.
- Trim dead limbs over the house and driveway.
- Tie down trash cans and outdoor furniture.
- Stay clear of downed lines and call the utility.
- 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 Saylorville
Is Saylorville at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Saylorville has lower expected damage per building than 93% of U.S. towns: A for hazard risk, #1 of 140 in Iowa. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (53%) and tornadoes (28%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Saylorville 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 Polk County, 23% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.4% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Saylorville?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Saylorville’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Saylorville at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (53%), and Saylorville’s rate for it is lower than 91% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Saylorville.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Saylorville’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.