Storms, floods and disasters in Westside Township
Westside Township isn’t graded for hazard risk: Westside Township has 137 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more.
What Westside 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
Strong wind
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.
Does Westside Township flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Westside Township. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Westside 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: Nobles County.7 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Westside Township
Disasters that paid out in Westside Township itself (aid to households or repair grants to Westside Township), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2024Severe Storms and Flooding$79K to Westside Township for repairs
- 2019Severe Winter Storm, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding$21K to Westside Township for repairs
- 2018Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding$37K to Westside Township for repairs
- 2014Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides$15K to Westside Township for repairs
- 2013Severe Winter Storm$6K to Westside Township for repairs
- 2008Severe Storms and Flooding$34K to Westside Township for repairs
Show all 7
- 2001Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes$31K to Westside Township for repairs
Nobles County has had 17 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then floods. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Old photos of Westside Township after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Westside Township archive →Westside Township and its neighbors
How expected damage per building compares across the town line. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adrian | Bless damage than 62% | river and rain flooding | 3 |
| Lismore Township | — | 105 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Olney Township | — | 128 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Grand Prairie Township | — | 207 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Magnolia Township | — | 180 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Kanaranzi Township | — | 324 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
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 Westside 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.
- Trim dead limbs over the house and driveway.
- Tie down trash cans and outdoor furniture.
- Stay clear of downed lines and call the utility.
- 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 Westside Township
Is Westside 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 Nobles County, 24% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.2% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Westside Township?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Westside 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 Westside Township?
By FEMA money that reached Westside Township, Severe Storms and Flooding (2024): $79K to Westside Township for repairs.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Westside Township.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Westside 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.