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Downtown carlisle, kyPhoto: W.marsh · CC BY-SA 3.0
C−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Carlisle · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, Carlisle faces more hazard damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Carlisle gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (88%). Flood insurance has paid 13 claims here since 1997.

River and rain flooding 88%Tornadoes 5%Strong wind 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 80%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
C−
in Kentucky · higher than 80% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
88% of expected building damage
Flood claims
13
paid since 1997 · $1.4M
Flooded more than once
3
properties
Disasters paid out here
8
of 26 declared for Nicholas County
By hazard

What Carlisle 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

88%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 88% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

5%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 69% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Strong wind Earthquakes Hail Hurricanes Ice storms Winter storms Lightning Wildfire Cold waves Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity

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 Carlisle’s grade

River and rain flooding is 88% of the building damage FEMA expects in Carlisle, and Carlisle’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 88% of U.S. census tracts. Strong wind adds 3%, at a rate in the top 9% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Carlisle sits
Carlisle
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C− higher expected damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding88%Tornadoes5%Everything else7%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.2M a year in losses across Carlisle: $853K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Carlisle’s 2,093 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 Carlisle flood? Sometimes: 13 flood claims since 1997

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Carlisle, from FEMA’s records: 11.7 per 1,000 homes, more than 76% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1997: 1 claim1998: 0 claims1999: 0 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 0 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 0 claims2004: 1 claim2005: 0 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 1 claim2009: 0 claims2010: 1 claim2011: 1 claim2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 1 claim2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 1 claim2021: 6 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims199720042021
19972026
Biggest named events
  • The Mid-spring storms1 claim · $1K
  • The Heavy rains1 claim · $33K
13
paid claims since 1997
$1.4M
paid to owners
3
homes flooded more than once
$109K
average claim
Homes that flooded again and again
FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (0)Flooded 2+ times
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Nicholas County.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
4storm safe rooms built
Disasters

8 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Carlisle

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

  1. 2015Severe Winter Storm, Snowstorm, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides$5K to the City of Carlisle for repairs
  2. 2011Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding$24K to the City of Carlisle for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
  3. 2010Severe Storms, Flooding, Mudslides, and Tornadoes22 households applied for aid$79K aid approved1 flood claim paid that year
  4. 2009Severe Winter Storm and Flooding$10K to the City of Carlisle for repairs
  5. 2008Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Flooding, Mudslides, and Landslides$13K to the City of Carlisle for repairs
  6. 2008Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and18 households applied for aid$50K aid approved$8K to the City of Carlisle for repairs
Show all 8
  1. 2004Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Flooding, and Mudslides1 households applied for aid$777 aid approved1 flood claim paid that year
  2. 2003Severe Winter Ice and Snow Storms, Heavy Rain, Flooding, Tornadoes, and Mud and36 households applied for aid$32K aid approved$41K to the City of Carlisle for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in CarlisleNicholas County only

Nicholas County has had 26 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then winter storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Carlisle archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Carlisle 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 Carlisle

Is Carlisle at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Carlisle has higher expected damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (88%) and tornadoes (5%). 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 Carlisle flood?

Flood insurance has paid 13 claims in Carlisle since 1997, $1.4M in all, or 11.7 per 1,000 homes, more than 76% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 3 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Mid-spring storms (1).

Is Carlisle 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 Nicholas County, 7% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.4% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Carlisle?

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

By FEMA money that reached Carlisle, Severe Storms, Flooding, Mudslides, and Tornadoes (2010): 22 households applied for aid, $79K approved. By flood claims, Mid-spring storms: 1 paid, $1K.

Is Carlisle at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (88%), and Carlisle’s rate for it is higher than 88% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Carlisle.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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