Photo: Jesse Sallak · CC BY-SA 4.0On FEMA’s figures, few U.S. towns expect less hazard damage per building than Mancelona Township, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Mancelona Township gets an A+ for hazard risk: among the lowest expected damage per building of U.S. towns, #13 of 701 in Michigan. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (87%). 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 Mancelona 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
Tornadoes
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 Mancelona Township’s grade
River and rain flooding is 87% of the building damage FEMA expects in Mancelona Township, and Mancelona Township’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 87% of U.S. census tracts. Next is tornadoes at 6% (lower than 57% of U.S. census tracts).
A+ #13 of 701 in Michigan; among the lowest expected damage per building of U.S. towns (21,298).
Mancelona Township’s residents live in 3 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Michigan town has lower expected damage than 77% of U.S. towns; within the state, Mancelona Township has less expected damage per building than 98% of Michigan towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.2M a year in losses across Mancelona Township: $503K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Mancelona Township flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Mancelona Township. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Mancelona 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: Antrim County.The storms Mancelona Township remembers
None of the 4 disasters declared for Antrim County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Mancelona Township itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
Antrim County has had 4 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often winter storms, then floods. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Mancelona Township and its neighbors
Mancelona Township has the lowest expected damage per building of the 5 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mancelona Township | A+among the lowest damage | river and rain flooding | 0 |
| Star Township | A+less damage than 97% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Coldsprings Township | Aless damage than 94% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Custer Township | Aless damage than 94% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Hayes Township | Aless damage than 93% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Chestonia Township | — | 514 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Blue Lake Township | — | 443 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Lakes of the North | — | a Census area inside a town; graded with the town | |
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 Mancelona 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.
- 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.
- 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 Mancelona Township
Is Mancelona Township at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Mancelona Township has among the lowest expected damage per building of U.S. towns: A+ for hazard risk, #13 of 701 in Michigan. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (87%) and tornadoes (6%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Mancelona 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 Antrim County, 0.1% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.
How much is flood insurance in Mancelona Township?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Mancelona Township’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Mancelona Township at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (87%), and Mancelona Township’s rate for it is lower than 87% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Mancelona Township.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Mancelona 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.