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DHazard risk
Natural hazards in Phoenix · FEMA

More hazard damage per building is expected in Phoenix than in 85% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Phoenix gets a D for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 85% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (90%). Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 2009.

River and rain flooding 90%Tornadoes 6%Earthquakes 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

more than 85%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
D
in Illinois · higher than 85% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
90% of expected building damage
Flood claims
1
paid since 2009 · $2K
Disasters paid out here
8
of 21 declared for Cook County
By hazard

What Phoenix 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

90%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 8% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 6 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

6%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 83% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Earthquakes Hail Strong wind Winter storms Ice storms Hurricanes Cold waves Heat waves Landslides Lightning
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingWildfireAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 13% of Phoenix’s expected losses. Cold 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 Phoenix’s grade

River and rain flooding is 90% of the building damage FEMA expects in Phoenix, and Phoenix’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is in the top 8% of U.S. census tracts. Next is tornadoes at 6% (higher than 83% of U.S. census tracts).

Where Phoenix sits
Phoenix
Least damageMiddleMost damage

D higher expected damage per building than 85% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding90%Tornadoes6%Everything else4%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.8M a year in losses across Phoenix: $1.4M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Recent disaster.FEMA’s model looks at expected damage to the buildings standing today. After Severe Storms and Flooding in 2023, FEMA took 145 aid registrations from Phoenix addresses (the town has 857 homes).
Shared tract.All of Phoenix’s 1,708 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 Phoenix flood? Rarely: 1 flood claim since 2009

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Phoenix, from FEMA’s records: 1.2 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 75% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
2009: 1 claim2010: 0 claims2011: 0 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims2009
20092026
1
paid claims since 2009
$2K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$2K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Cook County.
Disasters

8 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Phoenix

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

  1. 2024Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Floodng88 households applied for aid$417K aid approved
  2. 2023Severe Storms and Flooding138 households applied for aid$367K aid approved
  3. 2023Severe Storms and Flooding145 households applied for aid$491K aid approved
  4. 2013Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding147 households applied for aid$226K aid approved
  5. 2011Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$12K to the Village of Phoenix for repairs
  6. 2010Severe Storms and Flooding135 households applied for aid$192K aid approved
Show all 8
  1. 2008Severe Storms and Flooding172 households applied for aid$233K aid approved
  2. 2000Illinois Winter Snow Storms$2K to the Village of Phoenix for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in PhoenixCook County only

Cook County has had 21 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.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Phoenix archive →
Next door

Phoenix and its neighbors

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

Harvey: hazard risk DSouth Holland: hazard risk DHarveySouth HollandPhoenix
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
PhoenixDmore damage than 85%river and rain flooding1
HarveyDmore damage than 91%river and rain flooding381
South HollandDmore damage than 93%river and rain flooding494

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 Phoenix 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 Phoenix

Is Phoenix at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Phoenix has higher expected damage per building than 85% of U.S. towns: D for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (90%) and tornadoes (6%). 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 Phoenix flood?

Flood insurance has paid 1 claim in Phoenix since 2009, $2K in all, or 1.2 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 75% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Is Phoenix 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 Cook County, 32% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.5% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Phoenix?

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

By FEMA money that reached Phoenix, Severe Storms and Flooding (2023): 145 households applied for aid, $491K approved.

Is Phoenix at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (90%), and Phoenix’s rate for it is in the top 8% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Phoenix.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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