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Sutton ParkPhoto: Gpwitteveen · CC BY-SA 3.0
–Not graded
Natural hazards in Suttons Bay · FEMA

Storms, floods and disasters in Suttons Bay

Suttons Bay isn’t graded for hazard risk: Suttons Bay has 555 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more.

Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
0
of 2 declared for Leelanau County
By hazard

What Suttons Bay 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

91%of expected building damage
Below average · lower than 67% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 4 years in the area
Smaller shares here
 Strong wind Tornadoes Hail Coastal flooding Wildfire Lightning Hurricanes Earthquakes Winter storms Ice storms Cold waves Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
AvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 61% of Suttons Bay’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.
Flood insurance claims

Does Suttons Bay flood? No paid flood claims on record

FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Suttons Bay. 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

Suttons Bay isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Leelanau County.
Disasters

The storms Suttons Bay remembers

None of the 2 disasters declared for Leelanau County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Suttons Bay itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.

Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Suttons BayLeelanau County only

Leelanau County has had 2 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.

Be ready

Get ready for what Suttons Bay 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 ↗
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 Suttons Bay

Is Suttons Bay 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 Leelanau County, 32% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.7% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Suttons Bay?

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

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Suttons Bay.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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