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Jenkins city hall downtownPhoto: FatCat96 · CC BY-SA 4.0
DHazard risk
Natural hazards in Jenkins · FEMA

FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Jenkins than in 89% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Jenkins gets a D for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 89% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (94%). Flood insurance has paid 13 claims here since 1989.

River and rain flooding 94%Earthquakes 2%Hail 1%

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 89%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
D
in Kentucky · higher than 89% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
94% of expected building damage
Flood claims
13
paid since 1989 · $1.0M
Flooded more than once
2
properties
Disasters paid out here
9
of 35 declared for Letcher County
By hazard

What Jenkins 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

94%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Earthquakes Hail Wildfire Tornadoes Strong wind Hurricanes Winter storms Ice storms Cold waves Heat waves Landslides Lightning Avalanches top 1%
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingTsunamisVolcanic 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 Jenkins’ grade

River and rain flooding is 94% of the building damage FEMA expects in Jenkins, and Jenkins’ rate of river and rain flooding damage is in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Jenkins sits
Jenkins
Least damageMiddleMost damage

D higher expected damage per building than 89% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding94%Everything else6%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.2M a year in losses across Jenkins: $985K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Recent disaster.FEMA’s model looks at expected damage to the buildings standing today. After Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides in 2022, FEMA took 642 aid registrations from Jenkins addresses (the town has 967 homes).
Shared tract.All of Jenkins’ 1,902 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Payne Gap CDP (347 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 Jenkins flood? Sometimes: 13 flood claims since 1989

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Jenkins, from FEMA’s records: 13.4 per 1,000 homes, more than 79% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1989: 1 claim1990: 0 claims1991: 0 claims1992: 0 claims1993: 0 claims1994: 0 claims1995: 0 claims1996: 0 claims1997: 0 claims1998: 0 claims1999: 0 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 0 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 0 claims2004: 0 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 0 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 7 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 5 claims2026: 0 claims198920222025
19892026
Biggest named events
  • The Late July Flooding7 claims · $718K
  • The February Kentucky Flooding5 claims · $289K
13
paid claims since 1989
$1.0M
paid to owners
2
homes flooded more than once
$78K
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

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

Insurance rates: Letcher County.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
25flood-prone properties bought out and cleared
Disasters

9 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Jenkins

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

  1. 2025Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides213 households applied for aid$1.3M aid approved$629K to the City of Jenkins for repairs5 flood claims paid that year
  2. 2022Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides642 households applied for aid$5.3M aid approved$993K to the City of Jenkins for repairs7 flood claims paid that year
  3. 2021Severe, Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides4 households applied for aid$1K aid approved
  4. 2015Severe Winter Storms, Snowstorms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides$24K to the City of Jenkins for repairs
  5. 2009Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Flooding and Mudslides7 households applied for aid$5K aid approved
  6. 2004Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Flooding, and Mudslides4 households applied for aid$3K aid approved
Show all 9
  1. 2003Severe Storms, Flooding, Mud and Rock Slides, and Tornadoes3 households applied for aid$1K aid approved
  2. 2003Severe Winter Ice and Snow Storms, Heavy Rain, Flooding, Tornadoes, and Mud and21 households applied for aid$35K aid approved
  3. 2002Severe Storms and Flooding$8K to the City of Jenkins for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in JenkinsLetcher County only

Letcher County has had 35 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.

Also 1 FEMA wildfire suppression grant (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Letcher County, 2016–2016.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Jenkins archive →
Next door

Jenkins and its neighbors

Jenkins has the lowest expected damage per building of the 1 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Payne Gap: not gradedMcRoberts: not gradedPayne GapMcRobertsJenkins
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
JenkinsDmore damage than 89%river and rain flooding13
Payne Gap—440 residents; we grade 1,000+
McRoberts—556 residents; we grade 1,000+

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.

Be ready

Get ready for what Jenkins 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 ↗
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 Jenkins

Is Jenkins at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Jenkins has higher expected damage per building than 89% of U.S. towns: D for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (94%). 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 Jenkins flood?

Flood insurance has paid 13 claims in Jenkins since 1989, $1.0M in all, or 13.4 per 1,000 homes, more than 79% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 2 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Late July Flooding (7).

Is Jenkins 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 Letcher County, 9% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.4% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Jenkins?

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

By FEMA money that reached Jenkins, Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides (2022): 642 households applied for aid, $5.3M approved, and $993K to the City of Jenkins for repairs. By flood claims, Late July Flooding: 7 paid, $718K.

Is Jenkins at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (94%), and Jenkins’ rate for it is in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Jenkins.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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