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Clay County Kansas CourthousePhoto: Unknown professional photographer paid by the Clay County Commissioners · CC BY-SA 4.0
C+Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Clay Center · FEMA

For strong wind, Clay Center’s building-damage rate is in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Clay Center gets a C+ for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 60% of U.S. towns, #98 of 151 in Kansas. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (69%), then tornadoes (13%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

River and rain flooding 69%Tornadoes 13%Strong wind 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

more than 60%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#98 of 151 in Kansas
Hazard risk
C+#98 of 151
in Kansas · higher than 60% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
69% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
7
of 13 declared for Clay County
By hazard

What Clay Center 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

69%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 64% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area

Tornadoes

13%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 8% of U.S. census tracts

Strong wind

6%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 5 times a year in the area

Hail

5%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 86% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 8 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Ice storms top 4% Wildfire Winter storms Earthquakes Heat waves top 0% Lightning Cold waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingHurricanesAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts heat waves at 10% of Clay Center’s expected losses. Heat waves do little damage to buildings (0.2%), 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 Clay Center’s grade

River and rain flooding is 69% of the building damage FEMA expects in Clay Center, and Clay Center’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 64% of U.S. census tracts. Tornadoes add 13%, at a rate in the top 8% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Clay Center sits
Clay Center
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C+ #98 of 151 in Kansas; higher expected damage per building than 60% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding69%Tornadoes13%Strong wind6%Everything else12%

The typical Kansas town has higher expected damage than 54% of U.S. towns; within the state, Clay Center has more expected damage per building than 65% of Kansas towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $2.3M a year in losses across Clay Center: $1.5M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Clay Center’s 4,199 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 Clay Center flood? No paid flood claims on record

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

of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Clay County.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
5storm safe rooms built
Disasters

7 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Clay Center

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

  1. 2021Severe Storms and Straight Line Winds$15K to the City of Clay Center for repairs
  2. 2019Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, Flooding,landslides,and Mudslides$23K to the City of Clay Center for repairs
  3. 2015Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding$10K to the City of Clay Center for repairs
  4. 2011Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding$64K to the City of Clay Center for repairs
  5. 2009Severe Winter Storms and Snowstorm$9K to the City of Clay Center for repairs
  6. 2007Severe Winter Storms$188K to the City of Clay Center for repairs
Show all 7
  1. 2007Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding7 households applied for aid$7K aid approved
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Clay CenterClay County only

Clay County has had 13 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 Clay Center after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Clay Center archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Clay Center 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 ↗
High winds
  • Trim dead limbs over the house and driveway.
  • Tie down trash cans and outdoor furniture.
  • Stay clear of downed lines and call the utility.
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 Clay Center

Is Clay Center at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Clay Center has higher expected damage per building than 60% of U.S. towns: C+ for hazard risk, #98 of 151 in Kansas. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (69%) 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.

Is Clay Center 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 Clay County, 16% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.6% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Clay Center?

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

By FEMA money that reached Clay Center, Severe Winter Storms (2007): $188K to the City of Clay Center for repairs.

Is Clay Center at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (69%), and Clay Center’s rate for it is higher than 64% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Clay Center.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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