FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Cleary than in 66% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Cleary gets a C for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 66% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (51%), then hail (20%). 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 Cleary 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
Hail
Tornadoes
Hurricanes
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 Cleary’s grade
River and rain flooding is 51% of the building damage FEMA expects in Cleary, and Cleary’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 53% of U.S. census tracts. Hail adds 20%, at a rate in the top 3% of U.S. census tracts.
C higher expected damage per building than 66% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Cleary’s residents live in 2 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $522K a year in losses across Cleary: $315K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Cleary flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Cleary. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Cleary isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Rankin County.The storms Cleary remembers
None of the 19 disasters declared for Rankin County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Cleary itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
Rankin County has had 19 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, then severe storms.
Cleary and its neighbors
Cleary has the lowest expected damage per building of the 2 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cleary | Cmore damage than 66% | river and rain flooding | 0 |
| Florence | Cmore damage than 68% | river and rain flooding | 38 |
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 Cleary 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- The season runs June through November and peaks from mid-August to mid-October.
- Bring in porch furniture and anything the wind can throw.
- Fill the gas tank and charge phones before the storm arrives.
- 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 Cleary
Is Cleary at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Cleary has higher expected damage per building than 66% of U.S. towns: C for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (51%) and hail (20%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Cleary 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 Rankin County, 33% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 2.3% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Cleary?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Cleary’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Cleary at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (51%), and Cleary’s rate for it is lower than 53% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Cleary.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Cleary’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.