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A+Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Paul · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, few U.S. towns expect less hazard damage per building than Paul, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Paul gets an A+ for hazard risk: among the lowest expected damage per building of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (64%), then earthquakes (28%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

River and rain flooding 64%Earthquakes 28%Wildfire 3%

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

among the lowestof U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
A+
in Idaho · among the lowest of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
64% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
0
of 2 declared for Minidoka County
By hazard

What Paul 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

64%of expected building damage
Well below average · lower than 95% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 6 years in the area

Earthquakes

28%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 78% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Wildfire Strong wind Tornadoes Hail Ice storms Lightning Winter storms Cold waves 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 heat waves at 15% of Paul’s expected losses. Heat waves do 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 Paul’s grade

River and rain flooding is 64% of the building damage FEMA expects in Paul, and Paul’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 95% of U.S. census tracts. Next is earthquakes at 28% (higher than 78% of U.S. census tracts).

Where Paul sits
Paul
Least damageMiddleMost damage

A+ among the lowest expected damage per building of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding64%Earthquakes28%Wildfire3%Everything else4%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $378K a year in losses across Paul: $217K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Paul’s 1,195 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 Paul flood? No paid flood claims on record

FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Paul. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.

of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Minidoka County.
Disasters

The storms Paul remembers

None of the 2 disasters declared for Minidoka County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Paul itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.

Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in PaulMinidoka County only

Minidoka County has had 2 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often floods. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.

Be ready

Get ready for what Paul 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 Paul

Is Paul at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Paul has among the lowest expected damage per building of U.S. towns: A+ for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (64%) and earthquakes (28%). 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.

Is Paul 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 Minidoka County, 0.1% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.

How much is flood insurance in Paul?

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

Is Paul at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (64%), and Paul’s rate for it is lower than 95% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Paul.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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