Photo: Unknown authorUnknown author or not provided · Public domainStorms, floods and disasters in Van Lear
Van Lear isn’t graded for hazard risk: Van Lear has 443 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more. Flood insurance has paid 40 claims here since 1984.
What Van Lear 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
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.
Does Van Lear flood? Sometimes: 40 flood claims since 1984
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Van Lear, from FEMA’s records.
- The Heavy rains9 claims · $238K
- The Storm3 claims · $22K
- The February Kentucky Flooding2 claims · $79K
Van Lear isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Johnson County.7 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Van Lear
Disasters that paid out in Van Lear itself (aid to households or repair grants to Van Lear), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2025Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides36 households applied for aid$433K aid approved2 flood claims paid that year
- 2021Severe, Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides20 households applied for aid$48K aid approved6 flood claims paid that year
- 2015Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslide3 households applied for aid$1K aid approved3 flood claims paid that year
- 2012Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds and Flooding10 households applied for aid$2K aid approved1 flood claim paid that year
- 2004Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Flooding, and Mudslides152 households applied for aid$540K aid approved9 flood claims paid that year
- 2003Severe Storms, Flooding, Mud and Rock Slides, and Tornadoes1 households applied for aid$1K aid approved
Show all 7
- 2003Severe Winter Ice and Snow Storms, Heavy Rain, Flooding, Tornadoes, and Mud and14 households applied for aid$42K aid approved
Johnson County has had 40 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 2 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Johnson County, 2000–2001.
Old photos of Van Lear after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Van Lear archive →Van Lear and its neighbors
How expected damage per building compares across the town line. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| West Van Lear | D−among the highest damage | river and rain flooding | — |
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 Van Lear 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.
- 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 Van Lear
Does Van Lear flood?
Flood insurance has paid 40 claims in Van Lear since 1984, $699K in all. The most claims came from Heavy rains (9).
Is Van Lear 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 Johnson County, 14% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 2.3% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Van Lear?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Van Lear’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 Van Lear?
By FEMA money that reached Van Lear, Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Flooding, and Mudslides (2004): 152 households applied for aid, $540K approved. By flood claims, Heavy rains: 9 paid, $238K.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Van Lear.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Van Lear’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.