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Conrad, Montana looking SouthPhoto: 5of7 · CC BY-SA 2.0
A−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Conrad · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, Conrad faces less hazard damage per building than 78% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Conrad gets an A− for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 78% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (91%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

River and rain flooding 91%Earthquakes 5%Wildfire 1%

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 78%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
A−
in Montana · lower than 78% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
91% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
2
of 10 declared for Pondera County
By hazard

What Conrad 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

91%of expected building damage
About average · higher than 52% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 4 years in the area

Earthquakes

5%of expected building damage
About average · higher than 58% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Wildfire Strong wind Cold waves top 2% Tornadoes Hail Winter storms Lightning Ice storms Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingHurricanesAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 46% of Conrad’s expected losses. Cold waves do little damage to buildings (0.5%), 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 Conrad’s grade

River and rain flooding is 91% of the building damage FEMA expects in Conrad, and Conrad’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 52% of U.S. census tracts. Next is earthquakes at 5% (higher than 58% of U.S. census tracts).

Where Conrad sits
Conrad
Least damageMiddleMost damage

A− lower expected damage per building than 78% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding91%Earthquakes5%Everything else3%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $2.2M a year in losses across Conrad: $1.1M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Conrad’s 2,318 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Brady CDP (116 residents) and Midway Colony CDP (100 residents). FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s, the same for all of them. 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 Conrad flood? No paid flood claims on record

FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Conrad. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.

Disasters

2 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Conrad

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

  1. 2016Severe Winter Storm and Straight-line Winds$3K to the City of Conrad for repairs
  2. 2011Severe Storms and Flooding20 households applied for aid$15K aid approved
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in ConradPondera County only

Pondera County has had 10 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 1 FEMA wildfire suppression grant (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Pondera County, 2017–2017.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Conrad archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Conrad 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 ↗
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 Conrad

Is Conrad at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Conrad has lower expected damage per building than 78% of U.S. towns: A− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (91%) and earthquakes (5%). 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 Conrad 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.

How much is flood insurance in Conrad?

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

By FEMA money that reached Conrad, Severe Storms and Flooding (2011): 20 households applied for aid, $15K approved.

Is Conrad at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (91%), and Conrad’s rate for it is higher than 52% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Conrad.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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