Charley's Automotive Service · Photo: Bill Eichelberger · CC BY-SA 4.0On FEMA’s figures, Grants faces more hazard damage per building than 76% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Grants gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 76% of U.S. towns, #42 of 73 in New Mexico. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (94%). Flood insurance has paid 21 claims here since 1992.
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 Grants 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
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 Grants’ grade
River and rain flooding is 94% of the building damage FEMA expects in Grants, and Grants’ rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 88% of U.S. census tracts.
C− #42 of 73 in New Mexico; higher expected damage per building than 76% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Grants’ residents live in 5 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical New Mexico town has higher expected damage than 71% of U.S. towns; within the state, Grants has more expected damage per building than 57% of New Mexico towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $4.5M a year in losses across Grants: $3.7M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Grants flood? Sometimes: 21 flood claims since 1992
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Grants, from FEMA’s records: 6.1 per 1,000 homes, more than 64% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Grants isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Cibola County.2 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Grants
Disasters that paid out in Grants itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Grants), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2013Severe Storms, Flooding, and Mudslides$5K to the City of Grants for repairs
- 2011Flooding$95K to the City of Grants for repairs
Cibola County has had 6 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 Grants after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Grants archive →Grants and its neighbors
Grants 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Rafael | C+more damage than 64% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Grants | C−more damage than 76% | river and rain flooding | 21 |
| Milan | C−more damage than 85% | river and rain flooding | 2 |
| Mount Taylor | — | 335 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
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 Grants 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.
- 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 Grants
Is Grants at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Grants has higher expected damage per building than 76% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk, #42 of 73 in New Mexico. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (94%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Grants flood?
Flood insurance has paid 21 claims in Grants since 1992, $593K in all, or 6.1 per 1,000 homes, more than 64% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 1 properties have flooded more than once.
Is Grants 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 Cibola County, 7% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.6% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Grants?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Grants’ 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 Grants?
By FEMA money that reached Grants, Flooding (2011): $95K to the City of Grants for repairs.
Is Grants at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (94%), and Grants’ rate for it is higher than 88% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Grants.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Grants’ 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.