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Downtown Idaho FallsPhoto: Eric Fredericks from Rancho Cordova, California, United States · CC BY-SA 2.0
B−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Idaho Falls · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, Idaho Falls faces about as much hazard damage per building as the typical U.S. town, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Idaho Falls gets a B− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 52% of U.S. towns, #29 of 59 in Idaho State. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (59%), then earthquakes (35%). Flood insurance has paid 3 claims here since 1979.

River and rain flooding 59%Earthquakes 35%Hail 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 52%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#29 of 59 in Idaho State
Hazard risk
B−#29 of 59
in Idaho State · higher than 52% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
59% of expected building damage
Flood claims
3
paid since 1979 · $3K
Flood claims per home
0 per 1,000
fewer than 99% of U.S. towns
By hazard

What Idaho Falls 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

59%of expected building damage
About average · lower than 54% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 2 years in the area

Earthquakes

35%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 84% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Hail Tornadoes Strong wind Wildfire Ice storms Cold waves Lightning Winter storms Heat waves Landslides Volcanic activity top 4%
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingHurricanesAvalanchesTsunamis
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 19% of Idaho Falls’ expected losses. Cold waves do little damage to buildings (0.1%), 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 Idaho Falls’ grade

River and rain flooding is 59% of the building damage FEMA expects in Idaho Falls, and Idaho Falls’ rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 54% of U.S. census tracts. Next is earthquakes at 35% (higher than 84% of U.S. census tracts).

Where Idaho Falls sits
Idaho Falls
Least damageMiddleMost damage

B− #29 of 59 in Idaho State; higher expected damage per building than 52% of U.S. towns (21,298).

Idaho Falls’ residents live in 16 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding59%Earthquakes35%Hail4%Everything else1%

The typical Idaho State town has higher expected damage than 52% of U.S. towns; within the state, Idaho Falls has less expected damage per building than 52% of Idaho State towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $32.4M a year in losses across Idaho Falls: $19.6M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

A firm figure. It combines 16 census tracts by where Idaho Falls’ residents live. FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims and disasters below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Idaho Falls flood? Rarely: 3 flood claims since 1979

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Idaho Falls, from FEMA’s records: 0.1 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 99% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1979: 1 claim1980: 0 claims1981: 0 claims1982: 0 claims1983: 0 claims1984: 0 claims1985: 0 claims1986: 0 claims1987: 0 claims1988: 0 claims1989: 0 claims1990: 0 claims1991: 0 claims1992: 0 claims1993: 0 claims1994: 0 claims1995: 0 claims1996: 0 claims1997: 0 claims1998: 1 claim1999: 0 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 0 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 0 claims2004: 0 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 0 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 1 claim2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims197919982015
19792026
3
paid claims since 1979
$3K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$1K
average claim
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Bonneville County.
Disasters

The storms Idaho Falls remembers

None of the 3 disasters declared for Bonneville County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Idaho Falls itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.

  1. 19791 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
  2. 19981 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
  3. 20151 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Idaho FallsBonneville County only

Bonneville County has had 3 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.

Also 1 FEMA wildfire suppression grant (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Bonneville County, 2016–2016.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Idaho Falls archive →
Next door

Idaho Falls and its neighbors

Idaho Falls has the lowest expected damage per building of the 3 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Ammon: hazard risk CLincoln: hazard risk CAmmonLincolnIdaho Falls
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
Idaho FallsB−more damage than 52%river and rain flooding3
LincolnCmore damage than 69%river and rain flooding—
AmmonCmore damage than 72%river and rain flooding1

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.

Be ready

Get ready for what Idaho Falls 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 ↗
Earthquakes
  • Drop, cover and hold on.
  • Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
  • Know how to shut off the gas.
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 Idaho Falls

Is Idaho Falls at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Idaho Falls has higher expected damage per building than 52% of U.S. towns: B− for hazard risk, #29 of 59 in Idaho State. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (59%) and earthquakes (35%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Does Idaho Falls flood?

Flood insurance has paid 3 claims in Idaho Falls since 1979, $3K in all, or 0.1 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 99% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Is Idaho Falls 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 Bonneville County, 0.2% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.

How much is flood insurance in Idaho Falls?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Idaho Falls’ flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.

Is Idaho Falls at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (59%), and Idaho Falls’ rate for it is lower than 54% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Idaho Falls.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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