Doe Run Creek Historic District · Photo: Bedford · Public domainOn FEMA’s figures, Doe Valley 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, Doe Valley gets a B− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 54% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (71%), then tornadoes (14%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.
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
What Doe Valley 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
Tornadoes
Strong wind
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.
What’s behind Doe Valley’s grade
River and rain flooding is 71% of the building damage FEMA expects in Doe Valley, and Doe Valley’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 60% of U.S. census tracts. Tornadoes add 14%, at a rate in the top 8% of U.S. census tracts.
B− higher expected damage per building than 54% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Doe Valley’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $755K a year in losses across Doe Valley: $369K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Doe Valley flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Doe Valley. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Doe Valley isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Meade County.The storms Doe Valley remembers
None of the 19 disasters declared for Meade County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Doe Valley itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
Meade County has had 19 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.
Get ready for what Doe Valley faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- 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.
- 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.
- Trim dead limbs over the house and driveway.
- Tie down trash cans and outdoor furniture.
- Stay clear of downed lines and call the utility.
- 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.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Questions about natural hazards in Doe Valley
Is Doe Valley at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Doe Valley has higher expected damage per building than 54% of U.S. towns: B− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (71%) and tornadoes (14%). 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 Doe Valley 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 Meade County, 21% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.2% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Doe Valley?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Doe Valley’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Doe Valley at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (71%), and Doe Valley’s rate for it is higher than 60% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Doe Valley.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Doe Valley’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.