Storms, floods and disasters in Stanley
Stanley isn’t graded for hazard risk: Stanley has 69 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more.
What Stanley 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
Hail
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.
Does Stanley flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Stanley. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Stanley isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Buchanan County.3 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Stanley
Disasters that paid out in Stanley itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Stanley), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2010Severe Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes1 households applied for aid$4K aid approved$2K to the City of Stanley for repairs
- 2008Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding19 households applied for aid$6K aid approved$743 to the City of Stanley for repairs
- 2004Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding14 households applied for aid$23K aid approved
Buchanan County has had 22 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.
Old photos of Stanley after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Stanley archive →Get ready for what Stanley 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.
- Park in a garage or under cover when storms are forecast.
- Stay away from windows while it falls.
- Photograph roof and car damage for your insurer.
- 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 Stanley
Is Stanley 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 Buchanan County, 20% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.8% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Stanley?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Stanley’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 Stanley?
By FEMA money that reached Stanley, Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding (2004): 14 households applied for aid, $23K approved.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Stanley.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Stanley’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.