Photo: Hot Springs Tourism & Welcome Center · CC BY-SA 4.0

–Not graded

Natural hazards in Hot Springs · FEMA

Storms, floods and disasters in Hot Springs

Hot Springs isn’t graded for hazard risk: Hot Springs has 567 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more. Flood insurance has paid 7 claims here since 2004.

Flood claims

paid since 2004 · $967K

Disasters paid out here

of 18 declared for Madison County

By hazard

What Hot Springs 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

90%of expected building damage

Well above average · higher than 88% of U.S. census tracts

Recorded about once a year in the area

Smaller shares here

Tornadoes Earthquakes Ice storms Landslides top 1% Strong wind Wildfire Hail Lightning Hurricanes Winter storms Cold waves

FEMA models no building damage here

Coastal floodingHeat wavesAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity

People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 9% of Hot Springs’ expected losses. Cold waves do little damage to buildings (0.0%), 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.

Flood insurance claims

Does Hot Springs flood? Rarely: 7 flood claims since 2004

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Hot Springs, from FEMA’s records.

Paid flood claims, by year

20042024

20042026

Biggest named events

Hurricane Helene6 claims · $965K
Tropical Storm Ivan1 claim · $2K

paid claims since 2004

$967K

paid to owners

homes flooded more than once

$138K

average claim

of homes in flood zones are insured

of all homes are insured

No community discount

Hot Springs isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Madison County.

What’s been done with FEMA grants

1home raised above flood level

1flood-prone property bought out and cleared

Disasters

4 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Hot Springs

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

2024Tropical Storm Helene543 households applied for aid$1.7M aid approved$3.5M to the Town of Hot Springs for repairs6 flood claims paid for it, $965K
2009Severe Winter Storms and Flooding$13K to the Town of Hot Springs for repairs
2004Hurricane Ivan24 households applied for aid$70K aid approved$14K to the Town of Hot Springs for repairs1 flood claim paid for it, $2K
2004Tropical Storm Frances11 households applied for aid$64K aid approved$43K to the Town of Hot Springs for repairs

Disasters declared, by decade

Paid out in Hot SpringsMadison County only

Madison County has had 18 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, then winter storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Hot Springs archive →

Be ready

Get ready for what Hot Springs 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.

Questions about natural hazards in Hot Springs

Does Hot Springs flood?

Flood insurance has paid 7 claims in Hot Springs since 2004, $967K in all. The most claims came from Hurricane Helene (6).

Is Hot Springs 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 Madison County, 20% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.0% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Hot Springs?

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

By FEMA money that reached Hot Springs, Tropical Storm Helene (2024): 543 households applied for aid, $1.7M approved, and $3.5M to the Town of Hot Springs for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Helene: 6 paid, $965K.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Hot Springs.

Town Square →

Start the conversation

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

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