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A grain elevator in Plentywood, Montana. The tallest structure in town.Photo: J.B. Chandler · Public domain
A+Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Plentywood · FEMA

FEMA puts Plentywood’s expected hazard damage per building below that of 96% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Plentywood gets an A+ for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 96% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (82%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

River and rain flooding 82%Tornadoes 4%Winter storms 4%

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 96%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 96% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
82% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
1
of 3 declared for Sheridan County
By hazard

What Plentywood 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

82%of expected building damage
Below average · lower than 78% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 2 years in the area
Smaller shares here
 Tornadoes Winter storms top 1% Strong wind Wildfire Ice storms Cold waves top 1% Hail Lightning Earthquakes Heat waves top 3% 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 59% of Plentywood’s expected losses. Cold waves do little damage to buildings (1.5%), 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 Plentywood’s grade

River and rain flooding is 82% of the building damage FEMA expects in Plentywood, and Plentywood’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 78% of U.S. census tracts. Winter storms add 4%, at a rate in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Plentywood sits
Plentywood
Least damageMiddleMost damage

A+ lower expected damage per building than 96% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding82%Tornadoes4%Winter storms4%Everything else9%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $2.0M a year in losses across Plentywood: $692K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Plentywood’s 1,669 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Outlook town (84 residents) and Antelope CDP (74 residents) and Redstone CDP (13 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 Plentywood flood? No paid flood claims on record

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

Disasters

1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Plentywood

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

  1. 2000Severe Winter Storms$3K to the City of Plentywood for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in PlentywoodSheridan County only

Sheridan County has had 3 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.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Plentywood archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Plentywood 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 ↗
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 Plentywood

Is Plentywood at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Plentywood has lower expected damage per building than 96% of U.S. towns: A+ for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (82%). 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 Plentywood 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 Plentywood?

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

By FEMA money that reached Plentywood, Severe Winter Storms (2000): $3K to the City of Plentywood for repairs.

Is Plentywood at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (82%), and Plentywood’s rate for it is lower than 78% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Plentywood.

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