FEMA puts Southgate’s expected hazard damage per building below that of 68% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Southgate gets a B+ for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 68% of U.S. towns, #38 of 142 in Kentucky. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (67%), then tornadoes (19%). 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 stands out about Southgate’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Southgate 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
Earthquakes
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 Southgate’s grade
River and rain flooding is 67% of the building damage FEMA expects in Southgate, and Southgate’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 58% of U.S. census tracts. Tornadoes add 19%, at a rate in the top 10% of U.S. census tracts.
B+ #38 of 142 in Kentucky; lower expected damage per building than 68% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Southgate’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, Southgate has less expected damage per building than 74% of Kentucky towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.0M a year in losses across Southgate: $673K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Southgate flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Southgate. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Southgate is in FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 9) for its flood-proofing work.
Insurance rates: Campbell County.The storms Southgate remembers
None of the 12 disasters declared for Campbell County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Southgate itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
Campbell County has had 12 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.
Southgate and its neighbors
Southgate is 2nd of the 4 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wilder | A−less damage than 78% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Southgate | B+less damage than 68% | river and rain flooding | 0 |
| Fort Thomas | B+less damage than 66% | river and rain flooding | 15 |
| Newport | C+more damage than 63% | river and rain flooding | 15 |
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 Southgate 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.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- 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.
- Southgate residents get 05% off flood insurance.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Questions about natural hazards in Southgate
Is Southgate at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Southgate has lower expected damage per building than 68% of U.S. towns: B+ for hazard risk, #38 of 142 in Kentucky. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (67%) and tornadoes (19%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Southgate 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 Campbell County, 37% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.2% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Southgate?
Southgate is in FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 9), which takes 05% off federal flood insurance policies for its flood-proofing work. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Southgate at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (67%), and Southgate’s rate for it is lower than 58% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Southgate.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Southgate’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.