Storms, floods and disasters in Sterling
Sterling isn’t graded for hazard risk: Sterling has 717 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more.
What Sterling 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
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.
Does Sterling flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Sterling. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Sterling isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Johnson County.1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Sterling
Disasters that paid out in Sterling itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Village of Sterling), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2019Severe Winter Storm, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding$414K to the Village of Sterling for repairs
Johnson County has had 19 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.
Old photos of Sterling after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Sterling archive →Get ready for what Sterling 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.
- 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 Sterling
Is Sterling 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 Johnson County, 7% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.4% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Sterling?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Sterling’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 Sterling?
By FEMA money that reached Sterling, Severe Winter Storm, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding (2019): $414K to the Village of Sterling for repairs.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Sterling.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Sterling’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.