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BHazard risk
Natural hazards in Garden Plain · FEMA

FEMA expects about as much hazard damage per building in Garden Plain as in the typical U.S. town, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Garden Plain gets a B for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 57% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (59%), then tornadoes (16%). Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 2021.

River and rain flooding 59%Tornadoes 16%Wildfire 10%

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 57%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
B
in Kansas · lower than 57% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
59% of expected building damage
Flood claims
1
paid since 2021 · $35K
Disasters paid out here
1
of 13 declared for Sedgwick County
By hazard

What Garden Plain 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
Below average · lower than 61% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 4 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

16%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 9% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 9 years in the area

Wildfire

10%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 6% of U.S. census tracts

Hail

9%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 90% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 11 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Ice storms top 4% Strong wind Earthquakes Lightning Winter storms Heat waves top 1% Hurricanes Cold 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 15% of Garden Plain’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 Garden Plain’s grade

River and rain flooding is 59% of the building damage FEMA expects in Garden Plain, and Garden Plain’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 61% of U.S. census tracts. Tornadoes add 16%, at a rate in the top 9% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Garden Plain sits
Garden Plain
Least damageMiddleMost damage

B lower expected damage per building than 57% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding59%Tornadoes16%Wildfire10%Everything else16%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $611K a year in losses across Garden Plain: $362K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Garden Plain’s 948 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Garden Plain township (1,998 residents) and Afton township (1,563 residents) and Grand River township (682 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 Garden Plain flood? Rarely: 1 flood claim since 2021

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Garden Plain, from FEMA’s records: 2.7 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 54% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
2021: 1 claim2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims2021
20212026
1
paid claims since 2021
$35K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$35K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Sedgwick County.
Disasters

1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Garden Plain

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

  1. 2005Severe Winter Storms, Heavy Rains, and Flooding$26K to the City of Garden Plain for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Garden PlainSedgwick County only

Sedgwick 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 Garden Plain after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Garden Plain archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Garden Plain 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 ↗
Wildfire
  • Clear dead leaves and brush within 5 feet of the house.
  • Sign up for local alerts and know two ways out.
  • Keep N95 masks for smoky days.
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 Garden Plain

Is Garden Plain at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Garden Plain has lower expected damage per building than 57% of U.S. towns: B for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (59%) and tornadoes (16%). 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 Garden Plain flood?

Flood insurance has paid 1 claim in Garden Plain since 2021, $35K in all, or 2.7 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 54% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Is Garden Plain 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 Sedgwick County, 16% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.4% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Garden Plain?

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

By FEMA money that reached Garden Plain, Severe Winter Storms, Heavy Rains, and Flooding (2005): $26K to the City of Garden Plain for repairs.

Is Garden Plain at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (59%), and Garden Plain’s rate for it is lower than 61% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Garden Plain.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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