Photo: Thomas R Machnitzki ([email protected]) · CC BY 3.0Storms, floods and disasters in Crenshaw
Crenshaw isn’t graded for hazard risk: Crenshaw has 628 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more. Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 2011.
What Crenshaw 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
Earthquakes
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.
Does Crenshaw flood? Rarely: 1 flood claim since 2011
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Crenshaw, from FEMA’s records.
- The Mid-spring storms1 claim · $3K
Crenshaw isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Panola County.7 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Crenshaw
Disasters that paid out in Crenshaw itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Crenshaw), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2026Severe Winter Storm171 households applied for aid$494K aid approved$55K to the Town of Crenshaw for repairs
- 2023Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, and Tornadoes22 households applied for aid$25K aid approved
- 2020Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding5 households applied for aid$23K aid approved
- 2016Severe Storms and Flooding29 households applied for aid$31K aid approved
- 2011Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Associated Flooding90 households applied for aid$179K aid approved$10K to the Town of Crenshaw for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
- 2005Hurricane Katrina$5K to the Town of Crenshaw for repairs
Show all 7
- 2001Severe Storms, Tornadoes and Flooding$5K to the Town of Crenshaw for repairs
Panola County has had 22 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then hurricanes and tropical storms.
Old photos of Crenshaw after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Crenshaw archive →Get ready for what Crenshaw 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.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- 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 Crenshaw
Does Crenshaw flood?
Flood insurance has paid 1 claim in Crenshaw since 2011, $3K in all. The most claims came from Mid-spring storms (1).
Is Crenshaw 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 Panola County, 14% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.6% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Crenshaw?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Crenshaw’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 Crenshaw?
By FEMA money that reached Crenshaw, Severe Winter Storm (2026): 171 households applied for aid, $494K approved, and $55K to the Town of Crenshaw for repairs. By flood claims, Mid-spring storms: 1 paid, $3K.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Crenshaw.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Crenshaw’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.