Belgrade City Hall and Jail · Photo: Robstutz · CC BY-SA 4.0FEMA expects about as much hazard damage per building in Belgrade as in the typical U.S. town, mostly from earthquakes
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Belgrade gets a B− for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 52% of U.S. towns, #26 of 42 in Montana. Most of that expected damage is earthquakes (60%), then river and rain flooding (33%). 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 Belgrade faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
Earthquakes
River and rain flooding
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 Belgrade’s grade
Earthquakes are 60% of the building damage FEMA expects in Belgrade, and Belgrade’s rate of earthquakes damage is higher than 88% of U.S. census tracts. Next is river and rain flooding at 33% (lower than 91% of U.S. census tracts).
B− #26 of 42 in Montana; lower expected damage per building than 52% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Belgrade’s residents live in 4 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Montana town has lower expected damage than 54% of U.S. towns; within the state, Belgrade has more expected damage per building than 61% of Montana towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $4.3M a year in losses across Belgrade: $2.0M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Belgrade flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Belgrade. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Belgrade isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Gallatin County.1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Belgrade
Disasters that paid out in Belgrade itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Belgrade), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2001Severe Winter Storms$7K to the City of Belgrade for repairs
Gallatin County has had 4 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then floods. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Also 2 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Gallatin County, 2000–2020.
Old photos of Belgrade after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Belgrade archive →Get ready for what Belgrade faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- 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.
- 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 Belgrade
Is Belgrade at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Belgrade has lower expected damage per building than 52% of U.S. towns: B− for hazard risk, #26 of 42 in Montana. Most of the expected damage is earthquakes (60%) and river and rain flooding (33%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Belgrade 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 Gallatin County, 20% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.8% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Belgrade?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Belgrade’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 Belgrade?
By FEMA money that reached Belgrade, Severe Winter Storms (2001): $7K to the City of Belgrade for repairs.
Is Belgrade at risk from earthquakes?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (60%), and Belgrade’s rate for it is higher than 88% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Belgrade.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Belgrade’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.