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A−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Burnside Township · FEMA

Less hazard damage per building is expected in Burnside Township than in 77% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Burnside Township gets an A− for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 77% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (80%). 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

less than 77%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
By hazard

What Burnside 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

80%of expected building damage
About average · lower than 56% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 2 years in the area

Tornadoes

9%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 66% of U.S. census tracts

Strong wind

7%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 7% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 4 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Hail Ice storms Lightning Earthquakes Hurricanes Winter storms Wildfire Cold waves Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 19% of Burnside Township’s expected losses. Cold waves do little damage to buildings (0.0%), so they aren’t part of the grade.

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 Burnside Township’s grade

River and rain flooding is 80% of the building damage FEMA expects in Burnside Township, and Burnside Township’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 56% of U.S. census tracts. Strong wind adds 7%, at a rate in the top 7% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Burnside Township sits
Burnside Township
Least damageMiddleMost damage

A− lower expected damage per building than 77% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding80%Tornadoes9%Strong wind7%Everything else4%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $606K a year in losses across Burnside Township: $416K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Burnside Township’s 1,904 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Goodland township (1,735 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 township’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 Burnside Township flood? No paid flood claims on record

FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Burnside Township. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.

of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

Burnside 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: Lapeer County.
Disasters

The storms Burnside Township remembers

None of the 7 disasters declared for Lapeer County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Burnside Township itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.

Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Burnside TownshipLapeer County only

Lapeer County has had 7 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.

Next door

Burnside Township and its neighbors

Burnside Township is 2nd of the 5 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
Goodland TownshipA−less damage than 77%river and rain flooding—
Burnside TownshipA−less damage than 77%river and rain flooding0
Burlington TownshipB+less damage than 70%river and rain flooding—
Brown CityBless damage than 62%river and rain flooding—
Maple Valley TownshipBless damage than 62%river and rain flooding—
Marlette Township—not graded yet
Flynn Township—not graded yet

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 Burnside 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.

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 ↗
Tornado warnings
  • 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.
More from Ready.gov ↗
High winds
  • Trim dead limbs over the house and driveway.
  • Tie down trash cans and outdoor furniture.
  • Stay clear of downed lines and call the utility.
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 Burnside Township

Is Burnside Township at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Burnside Township has lower expected damage per building than 77% of U.S. towns: A− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (80%) and tornadoes (9%). 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.

Is Burnside 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 Lapeer County, 8% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.1% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Burnside Township?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Burnside Township’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.

Is Burnside Township at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (80%), and Burnside Township’s rate for it is lower than 56% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Burnside Township.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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