Photo: Coemgenus at English Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 3.0For wildfire, Hardin’s building-damage rate is in the top 3% of U.S. census tracts
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Hardin gets a B for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 63% of U.S. towns, #17 of 42 in Montana. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (65%), then wildfire (28%). 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 stands out about Hardin’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Hardin 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
Wildfire
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 Hardin’s grade
River and rain flooding is 65% of the building damage FEMA expects in Hardin, and Hardin’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 60% of U.S. census tracts. Wildfire adds 28%, at a rate in the top 3% of U.S. census tracts.
B #17 of 42 in Montana; lower expected damage per building than 63% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Hardin’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
The typical Montana town has lower expected damage than 54% of U.S. towns; within the state, Hardin has less expected damage per building than 61% of Montana towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $2.6M a year in losses across Hardin: $1.2M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Hardin flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Hardin. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Hardin isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Big Horn County.3 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Hardin
Disasters that paid out in Hardin itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Hardin), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2011Severe Storms and Flooding50 households applied for aid$135K aid approved$20K to the City of Hardin for repairs
- 143 households applied for aid$2.6M aid approved
- 113 households applied for aid$569K aid approved
Big Horn County has had 5 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 Big Horn County, 2021–2021.
Old photos of Hardin after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Hardin archive →Get ready for what Hardin 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.
- Clear dead leaves and brush within 5 feet of the house.
- Sign up for local alerts and know two ways out.
- Keep N95 masks for smoky days.
- 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 Hardin
Is Hardin at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Hardin has lower expected damage per building than 63% of U.S. towns: B for hazard risk, #17 of 42 in Montana. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (65%) and wildfire (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 Hardin 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 Big Horn County, 0.1% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.
How much is flood insurance in Hardin?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Hardin’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 Hardin?
By FEMA money that reached Hardin, (): 143 households applied for aid, $2.6M approved.
Is Hardin at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (65%), and Hardin’s rate for it is lower than 60% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Hardin.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Hardin’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.