Photo: Chillin662 · CC BY-SA 4.0Storms, floods and disasters in Derma
Derma isn’t graded for hazard risk: Derma has 963 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more.
What Derma 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 Derma flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Derma. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Derma isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Calhoun County.5 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Derma
Disasters that paid out in Derma itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Derma), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2026Severe Winter Storm14 households applied for aid$41K aid approved$11K to the Town of Derma for repairs
- 2020Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding$19K to the Town of Derma for repairs
- 2011Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Associated Flooding$2K to the Town of Derma for repairs
- 2005Hurricane Katrina$4K to the Town of Derma for repairs
- 2003Severe Storms, Tornadoes and High Winds1 households applied for aid$691 aid approved
Calhoun County has had 18 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then hurricanes and tropical storms.
Old photos of Derma after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Derma archive →Derma 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calhoun City | Cmore damage than 69% | river and rain flooding | 7 |
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 Derma 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 Derma
Is Derma 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 Calhoun County, 8% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.6% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Derma?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Derma’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 Derma?
By FEMA money that reached Derma, Severe Winter Storm (2026): 14 households applied for aid, $41K approved, and $11K to the Town of Derma for repairs.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Derma.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Derma’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.