Photo: Quintin Soloviev · CC BY 4.0On FEMA’s figures, Missoula faces about as much hazard damage per building as the typical U.S. town, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Missoula gets a B− for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 53% of U.S. towns, #25 of 42 in Montana. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (63%), then earthquakes (30%). Flood insurance has paid 19 claims here since 1978.
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 Missoula’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Missoula 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
Earthquakes
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 Missoula’s grade
River and rain flooding is 63% of the building damage FEMA expects in Missoula, and Missoula’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 51% of U.S. census tracts. Wildfire adds 4%, at a rate in the top 7% of U.S. census tracts.
B− #25 of 42 in Montana; lower expected damage per building than 53% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Missoula’s residents live in 21 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, Missoula has more expected damage per building than 59% of Montana towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $36.7M a year in losses across Missoula: $16.5M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Missoula flood? Sometimes: 19 flood claims since 1978
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Missoula, from FEMA’s records: 0.5 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 89% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Missoula is in FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 7) for its flood-proofing work.
Insurance rates: Missoula County.4 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Missoula
Disasters that paid out in Missoula itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Missoula), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2024Straight-line Winds$2.0M to the City of Missoula for repairs
- 2018Flooding$32K to the City of Missoula for repairs
- 2011Severe Storms and Flooding79 households applied for aid$109K aid approved4 flood claims paid that year
- 2001Severe Winter Storms$369K to the City of Missoula for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
Missoula County has had 11 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 7 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Missoula County, 2000–2017.
Old photos of Missoula after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Missoula archive →Missoula and its neighbors
Missoula is 2nd of the 3 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Orchard Homes | Bless damage than 64% | river and rain flooding | 42 |
| Missoula | B−less damage than 53% | river and rain flooding | 19 |
| East Missoula | C+more damage than 59% | river and rain flooding | — |
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.
Get ready for what Missoula 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.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- 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.
- Missoula residents get 15% off flood insurance.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Questions about natural hazards in Missoula
Is Missoula at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Missoula has lower expected damage per building than 53% of U.S. towns: B− for hazard risk, #25 of 42 in Montana. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (63%) and earthquakes (30%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Missoula flood?
Flood insurance has paid 19 claims in Missoula since 1978, $55K in all, or 0.5 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 89% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Is Missoula 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 Missoula County, 14% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.5% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Missoula?
Missoula is in FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 7), which takes 15% 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 Missoula?
By FEMA money that reached Missoula, Straight-line Winds (2024): $2.0M to the City of Missoula for repairs.
Is Missoula at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (63%), and Missoula’s rate for it is higher than 51% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Missoula.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Missoula’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.