Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Flora

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
Center from Columbia in FloraPhoto: Nyttend · Public domain
BHazard risk
Natural hazards in Flora · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, Flora 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, Flora gets a B for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 56% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (74%), then tornadoes (13%). Flood insurance has paid 2 claims here since 1983.

River and rain flooding 74%Tornadoes 13%Earthquakes 6%

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

less than 56%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
B
in Indiana · lower than 56% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
74% of expected building damage
Flood claims
2
paid since 1983 · $20K
Disasters paid out here
5
of 14 declared for Carroll County
By hazard

What Flora 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

74%of expected building damage
About average · higher than 55% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area

Tornadoes

13%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 86% of U.S. census tracts

Earthquakes

6%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 68% of U.S. census tracts

Hail

6%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 85% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 4 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Strong wind Lightning Hurricanes Wildfire Winter storms Ice storms Cold waves Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 13% of Flora’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 Flora’s grade

River and rain flooding is 74% of the building damage FEMA expects in Flora, and Flora’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 55% of U.S. census tracts. Next is tornadoes at 13% (higher than 86% of U.S. census tracts).

Where Flora sits
Flora
Least damageMiddleMost damage

B lower expected damage per building than 56% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding74%Tornadoes13%Earthquakes6%Everything else7%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.0M a year in losses across Flora: $677K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Flora’s 2,094 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Bringhurst CDP (215 residents). FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s, the same for all of them. 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 Flora flood? Rarely: 2 flood claims since 1983

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Flora, from FEMA’s records: 2.0 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 61% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1983: 1 claim1984: 0 claims1985: 0 claims1986: 0 claims1987: 0 claims1988: 0 claims1989: 1 claim1990: 0 claims1991: 0 claims1992: 0 claims1993: 0 claims1994: 0 claims1995: 0 claims1996: 0 claims1997: 0 claims1998: 0 claims1999: 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: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims19831989
19832026
2
paid claims since 1983
$20K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$10K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Carroll County.
Disasters

5 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Flora

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

  1. 2026Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding2 households applied for aid$5K aid approved
  2. 2007Snow$7K to the Town of Flora for repairs
  3. 2005Severe Winter Storms and Flooding2 households applied for aid$2K aid approved
  4. 2003Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding23 households applied for aid$52K aid approved$7K to the Town of Flora for repairs
  5. 1999In-winter Storm 12/23/98$4K to the Town of Flora for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in FloraCarroll County only

Carroll County has had 14 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often winter storms, then severe storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Flora archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Flora 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 ↗
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 ↗
Hail
  • 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.
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 Flora

Is Flora at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Flora has lower expected damage per building than 56% of U.S. towns: B for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (74%) and tornadoes (13%). 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 Flora flood?

Flood insurance has paid 2 claims in Flora since 1983, $20K in all, or 2.0 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 61% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Is Flora 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 Carroll County, 21% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.9% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Flora?

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

By FEMA money that reached Flora, Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding (2003): 23 households applied for aid, $52K approved, and $7K to the Town of Flora for repairs.

Is Flora at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (74%), and Flora’s rate for it is higher than 55% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Flora.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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