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Downtown Tupelo 1Photo: Fredlyfish4 · CC BY-SA 3.0
B−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Tupelo · FEMA

FEMA expects about as much hazard damage per building in Tupelo as in the typical U.S. town, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Tupelo gets a B− for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 53% of U.S. towns, #19 of 101 in Mississippi. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (54%), then earthquakes (30%). Flood insurance has paid 75 claims here since 1979.

River and rain flooding 54%Earthquakes 30%Tornadoes 12%

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 53%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#19 of 101 in Mississippi
Hazard risk
B−#19 of 101
in Mississippi · lower than 53% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
54% of expected building damage
Flood claims
75
paid since 1979 · $1.6M
Flooded more than once
7
properties · 1 “severe repetitive loss”
Flood insurance
05% off
Community discount (class 9)

What stands out about Tupelo’s natural hazards

From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.

05% off flood insuranceFlood-proofing work earns Tupelo residents a discount through FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 9).Made safer with FEMA grants267 storm safe rooms built with FEMA grants.Remembers 200323 flood claims were paid for 2003 alone, the most of any year.
By hazard

What Tupelo 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

54%of expected building damage
About average · lower than 60% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Earthquakes

30%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 82% of U.S. census tracts

Tornadoes

12%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 85% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Hurricanes Ice storms Strong wind Hail Cold waves top 3% Lightning Winter storms Wildfire 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 17% of Tupelo’s expected losses. Cold waves do little damage to buildings (0.2%), 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 Tupelo’s grade

River and rain flooding is 54% of the building damage FEMA expects in Tupelo, and Tupelo’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 60% of U.S. census tracts. Next is earthquakes at 30% (higher than 82% of U.S. census tracts).

Where Tupelo sits
Tupelo
Least damageMiddleMost damage

B− #19 of 101 in Mississippi; lower expected damage per building than 53% of U.S. towns (21,298).

Tupelo’s residents live in 17 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding54%Earthquakes30%Tornadoes12%Everything else4%

The typical Mississippi town has higher expected damage than 64% of U.S. towns; within the state, Tupelo has less expected damage per building than 82% of Mississippi towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $20.2M a year in losses across Tupelo: $12.1M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Recent disaster.FEMA’s model looks at expected damage to the buildings standing today. After Severe Winter Storm in 2026, FEMA took 1,024 aid registrations from Tupelo addresses (the town has 17,578 homes).
A firm figure. It combines 17 census tracts by where Tupelo’s residents live. FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims and disasters below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Tupelo flood? Sometimes: 75 flood claims since 1979

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Tupelo, from FEMA’s records: 4.3 per 1,000 homes, more than 56% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1979: 1 claim1980: 0 claims1981: 0 claims1982: 2 claims1983: 4 claims1984: 1 claim1985: 0 claims1986: 0 claims1987: 0 claims1988: 0 claims1989: 2 claims1990: 0 claims1991: 8 claims1992: 0 claims1993: 2 claims1994: 0 claims1995: 0 claims1996: 0 claims1997: 1 claim1998: 0 claims1999: 0 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 3 claims2002: 4 claims2003: 23 claims2004: 2 claims2005: 1 claim2006: 0 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 1 claim2009: 1 claim2010: 8 claims2011: 2 claims2012: 1 claim2013: 2 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 1 claim2020: 0 claims2021: 1 claim2022: 0 claims2023: 1 claim2024: 0 claims2025: 3 claims2026: 0 claims199120032010
19792026
Biggest named events
  • The Mid-spring storms1 claim · $35K
75
paid claims since 1979
$1.6M
paid to owners
7
homes flooded more than once
$22K
average claim
Homes that flooded again and again
FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (1)Flooded 2+ times
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
Community discount05% off flood insurance

Tupelo is in FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 9) for its flood-proofing work.

Insurance rates: Lee County.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
267storm safe rooms built
Disasters

8 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Tupelo

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

  1. 2026Severe Winter Storm1,024 households applied for aid$1.5M aid approved$278K to the City of Tupelo for repairs
  2. 2025Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding$41K to the City of Tupelo for repairs3 flood claims paid that year
  3. 2019Severe Storm, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding$180K to the City of Tupelo for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
  4. 2014Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding1,208 households applied for aid$518K aid approved$4.1M to the City of Tupelo for repairs
  5. 2005Hurricane Katrina$104K to the City of Tupelo for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
  6. 2003Severe Storms, Tornadoes and High Winds4 households applied for aid$1K aid approved23 flood claims paid that year
Show all 8
  1. 2001Severe Storms and Flooding$247K to the City of Tupelo for repairs3 flood claims paid that year
  2. 1998Severe Winter Storms, Ice and Freezing Rain$122K to the City of Tupelo for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in TupeloLee County only

Lee County has had 18 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then hurricanes and tropical storms.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Tupelo archive →
Next door

Tupelo and its neighbors

Tupelo is 2nd of the 3 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Verona: hazard risk A−Saltillo: hazard risk C+VeronaSaltilloTupelo
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
VeronaA−less damage than 82%river and rain flooding—
TupeloB−less damage than 53%river and rain flooding75
SaltilloC+more damage than 59%river and rain flooding34

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.

Be ready

Get ready for what Tupelo 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.
  • Tupelo residents get 05% off flood insurance.
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 Tupelo

Is Tupelo at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Tupelo has lower expected damage per building than 53% of U.S. towns: B− for hazard risk, #19 of 101 in Mississippi. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (54%) and earthquakes (30%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Does Tupelo flood?

Flood insurance has paid 75 claims in Tupelo since 1979, $1.6M in all, or 4.3 per 1,000 homes, more than 56% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 7 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Mid-spring storms (1).

Is Tupelo 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 Lee County, 16% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.8% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Tupelo?

Tupelo is in FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 9), which takes 05% off federal flood insurance policies for its flood-proofing work. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.

What was the biggest storm in Tupelo?

By FEMA money that reached Tupelo, Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding (2014): 1,208 households applied for aid, $518K approved, and $4.1M to the City of Tupelo for repairs. By flood claims, Mid-spring storms: 1 paid, $35K.

Is Tupelo at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (54%), and Tupelo’s rate for it is lower than 60% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Tupelo.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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