Chicagon Mine Road-Chicagon Creek Bridge · Photo: rossograph · CC BY-SA 4.0Storms, floods and disasters in Bates Township
Bates Township isn’t graded for hazard risk: Bates Township has 927 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more.
What Bates Township 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
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.
Does Bates Township flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Bates Township. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Bates Township isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Iron County.1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Bates Township
Disasters that paid out in Bates Township itself (aid to households or repair grants to Bates Township), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2002Flooding$4K to Bates Township for repairs
Iron County has had 4 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often floods, then winter storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Old photos of Bates Township after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Bates Township archive →Bates Township 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Iron River | Aless damage than 91% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Iron River Township | Aless damage than 86% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Stambaugh Township | A−less damage than 82% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Crystal Falls Township | B+less damage than 74% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Hematite Township | — | 292 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Amasa | — | 253 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Duncan Township | — | 203 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.
Get ready for what Bates Township 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.
- 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 Bates Township
Is Bates Township 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 Iron County, 0.0% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.
How much is flood insurance in Bates Township?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Bates Township’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 Bates Township?
By FEMA money that reached Bates Township, Flooding (2002): $4K to Bates Township for repairs.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Bates Township.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Bates Township’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.