Photo: Drdpw · CC BY-SA 4.0More hazard damage per building is expected in Cass City than in 75% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Cass City gets a C for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 75% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (90%). 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 Cass City 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.
What’s behind Cass City’s grade
River and rain flooding is 90% of the building damage FEMA expects in Cass City, and Cass City’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 86% of U.S. census tracts. Strong wind adds 4%, at a rate in the top 6% of U.S. census tracts.
C higher expected damage per building than 75% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Cass City’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.5M a year in losses across Cass City: $1.2M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Cass City flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Cass City. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Cass City isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Tuscola County.1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Cass City
Disasters that paid out in Cass City itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Village of Cass City), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2000Snow$4K to the Village of Cass City for repairs
Tuscola County has had 9 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 Cass City after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Cass City archive →Cass City and its neighbors
Cass City is 2nd of the 3 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elkland Township | Cmore damage than 75% | river and rain flooding | 1 |
| Cass City | Cmore damage than 75% | river and rain flooding | 0 |
| Novesta Township | C−more damage than 84% | 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 Cass City 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 Cass City
Is Cass City at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Cass City has higher expected damage per building than 75% of U.S. towns: C for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (90%). 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 Cass City 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 Tuscola County, 11% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.4% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Cass City?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Cass City’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 Cass City?
By FEMA money that reached Cass City, Snow (2000): $4K to the Village of Cass City for repairs.
Is Cass City at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (90%), and Cass City’s rate for it is higher than 86% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Cass City.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Cass City’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.