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Elliott-Donaldson HouseElliott-Donaldson House · Photo: rossograph · CC BY-SA 4.0
BHazard risk
Natural hazards in Okolona · FEMA

Okolona’s building-damage rate from tornadoes is in the top 3% of U.S. census tracts

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Okolona gets a B for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 59% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (41%), then earthquakes (28%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

River and rain flooding 41%Earthquakes 28%Tornadoes 22%

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

less than 59%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
B
in Mississippi · lower than 59% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
41% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
10
of 19 declared for Chickasaw County
By hazard

What Okolona 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

41%of expected building damage
Well below average · lower than 86% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 2 years in the area

Earthquakes

28%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 82% of U.S. census tracts

Tornadoes

22%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 3% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 18 years in the area
Smaller shares here
 Hurricanes Strong wind Ice storms Hail Cold waves top 2% Lightning Wildfire Winter storms Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 12% of Okolona’s expected losses. Cold waves do little damage to buildings (0.3%), 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.
Hazard risk grade

What’s behind Okolona’s grade

River and rain flooding is 41% of the building damage FEMA expects in Okolona, and Okolona’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 86% of U.S. census tracts. Tornadoes add 22%, at a rate in the top 3% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Okolona sits
Okolona
Least damageMiddleMost damage

B lower expected damage per building than 59% of U.S. towns (21,298).

All of Okolona’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding41%Earthquakes28%Tornadoes22%Everything else9%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.5M a year in losses across Okolona: $741K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Okolona’s 2,513 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract. FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s. The flood claims below are the town’s own.
A shared figure. The grade describes the whole tract, not each street in it, and FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Okolona flood? No paid flood claims on record

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

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

Insurance rates: Chickasaw County.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
157storm safe rooms built
Disasters

10 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Okolona

Disasters that paid out in Okolona itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Okolona), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.

  1. 2026Severe Winter Storm28 households applied for aid$95K aid approved
  2. 2023Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, and Tornadoes22 households applied for aid$65K aid approved
  3. 2019Severe Storm, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding$48K to the City of Okolona for repairs
  4. 2019Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding$87K to the City of Okolona for repairs
  5. 2015Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding5 households applied for aid$21K aid approved$15K to the City of Okolona for repairs
  6. 2014Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding3 households applied for aid$259 aid approved
Show all 10
  1. 2011Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Associated Flooding374 households applied for aid$984K aid approved$261K to the City of Okolona for repairs
  2. 2005Hurricane Katrina$50K to the City of Okolona for repairs
  3. 2003Severe Storms, Tornadoes and High Winds61 households applied for aid$208K aid approved
  4. 1998Severe Winter Storms, Ice and Freezing Rain$3K to the City of Okolona for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in OkolonaChickasaw County only

Chickasaw County has had 19 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then hurricanes and tropical storms.

Were you here?

Old photos of Okolona after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Okolona archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Okolona 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 ↗
Earthquakes
  • Drop, cover and hold on.
  • Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
  • Know how to shut off the gas.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Tornado warnings
  • 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.
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 Okolona

Is Okolona at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Okolona has lower expected damage per building than 59% of U.S. towns: B for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (41%) and earthquakes (28%). The figures are for the one census tract the town shares with its neighbors. This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Is Okolona 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 Chickasaw County, 6% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.1% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Okolona?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Okolona’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 Okolona?

By FEMA money that reached Okolona, Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Associated Flooding (2011): 374 households applied for aid, $984K approved, and $261K to the City of Okolona for repairs.

Is Okolona at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (41%), and Okolona’s rate for it is lower than 86% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Okolona.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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