US Bullion Depository, Fort Knox, Kentucky · Photo: Work permit Original author=Cliff · CC BY-SA 4.0On FEMA’s figures, Fort Knox 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, Fort Knox gets a B− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 51% of U.S. towns, #68 of 142 in Kentucky. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (56%), then earthquakes (17%). 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 Fort Knox 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
Earthquakes
Tornadoes
Hail
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 Fort Knox’s grade
River and rain flooding is 56% of the building damage FEMA expects in Fort Knox, and Fort Knox’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 56% of U.S. census tracts. Ice storms add 3%, at a rate in the top 7% of U.S. census tracts.
B− #68 of 142 in Kentucky; higher expected damage per building than 51% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Fort Knox’s residents live in 4 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Kentucky town has higher expected damage than 52% of U.S. towns; within the state, Fort Knox has less expected damage per building than 52% of Kentucky towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $2.7M a year in losses across Fort Knox: $1.7M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Fort Knox flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Fort Knox. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Fort Knox isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Hardin County.The storms Fort Knox remembers
None of the 26 disasters declared for its 2 counties shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Fort Knox itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
Its 2 counties have 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.
Fort Knox and its neighbors
Fort Knox is 2nd of the 2 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Radcliff | B+less damage than 72% | river and rain flooding | 15 |
| Fort Knox | B−more damage than 51% | river and rain flooding | 0 |
Hazard risk = FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade; the map is shaded by fifths of the same scale. Flood claims = paid federal flood insurance claims on record.
Get ready for what Fort Knox 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.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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 Fort Knox
Is Fort Knox at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Fort Knox has higher expected damage per building than 51% of U.S. towns: B− for hazard risk, #68 of 142 in Kentucky. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (56%) and earthquakes (17%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Fort Knox 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 Hardin County, 25% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.8% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Fort Knox?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Fort Knox’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Fort Knox at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (56%), and Fort Knox’s rate for it is higher than 56% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Fort Knox.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Fort Knox’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.