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B+Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Girard Township · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, Girard Township faces less hazard damage per building than 70% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Girard Township gets a B+ for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 70% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (72%), then tornadoes (17%). Flood insurance has paid 2 claims here since 2008.

River and rain flooding 72%Tornadoes 17%Hail 6%

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 70%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
B+
in Michigan · lower than 70% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
72% of expected building damage
Flood claims
2
paid since 2008 · $4K
Flood claims per home
2 per 1,000
fewer than 60% of U.S. towns
By hazard

What Girard 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

72%of expected building damage
About average · lower than 58% of U.S. census tracts

Tornadoes

17%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 89% of U.S. census tracts

Hail

6%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 84% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 3 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Earthquakes Strong wind Ice storms Hurricanes Lightning Wildfire Winter storms 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 9% of Girard 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 Girard Township’s grade

River and rain flooding is 72% of the building damage FEMA expects in Girard Township, and Girard Township’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 58% of U.S. census tracts. Next is tornadoes at 17% (higher than 89% of U.S. census tracts).

Where Girard Township sits
Girard Township
Least damageMiddleMost damage

B+ lower expected damage per building than 70% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding72%Tornadoes17%Hail6%Everything else5%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $518K a year in losses across Girard Township: $384K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Girard Township’s 1,770 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Butler township (1,417 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 Girard Township flood? Rarely: 2 flood claims since 2008

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Girard Township, from FEMA’s records: 2.1 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 60% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
2008: 1 claim2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 0 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 1 claim2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims20082018
20082026
Biggest named events
  • Hurricane Ike1 claim · $2K
2
paid claims since 2008
$4K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$2K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

Girard 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: Branch County.
Disasters

The storms Girard Township remembers

None of the 3 disasters declared for Branch County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Girard Township itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.

  1. 20081 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
  2. 20181 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Girard TownshipBranch County only

Branch County has had 3 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often winter storms, then severe storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.

Were you here?

Old photos of Girard Township after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Girard Township archive →
Next door

Girard Township and its neighbors

Girard Township is 6th of the 6 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Coldwater: hazard risk A−Coldwater Township: hazard risk A−Union Township: hazard risk A−Butler Township: hazard risk B+Tekonsha Township: hazard risk B+ColdwaterColdwater TownshipUnion TownshipButler TownshipTekonsha TownshipGirard Township
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
ColdwaterA−less damage than 82%river and rain flooding10
Coldwater TownshipA−less damage than 76%river and rain flooding9
Union TownshipA−less damage than 75%river and rain flooding7
Tekonsha TownshipB+less damage than 70%river and rain flooding1
Butler TownshipB+less damage than 70%river and rain flooding—
Girard TownshipB+less damage than 70%river and rain flooding2

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 Girard 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 ↗
Hail
  • 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.
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 Girard Township

Is Girard Township at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Girard Township has lower expected damage per building than 70% of U.S. towns: B+ for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (72%) and tornadoes (17%). 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.

Does Girard Township flood?

Flood insurance has paid 2 claims in Girard Township since 2008, $4K in all, or 2.1 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 60% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Hurricane Ike (1).

Is Girard 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 Branch County, 8% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.4% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Girard Township?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Girard 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 Girard Township?

By flood claims, Hurricane Ike: 1 paid, $2K.

Is Girard Township at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (72%), and Girard Township’s rate for it is lower than 58% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Girard Township.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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