Photo: The original uploader was Hephaestos at English Wikipedia. · CC BY-SA 3.0New Salem’s building-damage rate from hail is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, New Salem gets a C+ for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 61% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is hail (43%), then river and rain flooding (39%). 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 New Salem faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
Hail
River and rain flooding
Tornadoes
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 New Salem’s grade
Hail is 43% of the building damage FEMA expects in New Salem, and New Salem’s rate of hail damage is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts. Ice storms add 4%, at a rate in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts.
C+ higher expected damage per building than 61% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of New Salem’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $960K a year in losses across New Salem: $598K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does New Salem flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in New Salem. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
New Salem isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Morton County.2 federal disasters brought FEMA money to New Salem
Disasters that paid out in New Salem itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of New Salem), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2011Flooding3 households applied for aid$2K aid approved
- 2009Severe Storms and Flooding14 households applied for aid$19K aid approved
Morton County has had 24 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often floods, then severe storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Old photos of New Salem after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the New Salem archive →Get ready for what New Salem faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- Park in a garage or under cover when storms are forecast.
- Stay away from windows while it falls.
- Photograph roof and car damage for your insurer.
- 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.
- Pick your spot now: the lowest floor, an inside room, no windows.
- A watch means be ready; a warning means take cover now.
- Keep shoes and a flashlight by the bed.
- 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 New Salem
Is New Salem at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, New Salem has higher expected damage per building than 61% of U.S. towns: C+ for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is hail (43%) and river and rain flooding (39%). 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 New Salem 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 Morton County, 8% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.3% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in New Salem?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for New Salem’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 New Salem?
By FEMA money that reached New Salem, Severe Storms and Flooding (2009): 14 households applied for aid, $19K approved.
Is New Salem at risk from hail?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (43%), and New Salem’s rate for it is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in New Salem.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where New Salem’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.