Photo: Flickr user Ken Lund · CC BY-SA 2.0FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Gardnerville than in 93% of U.S. towns, mostly from earthquakes
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Gardnerville gets a D for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 93% of U.S. towns, #37 of 42 in Nevada. Most of that expected damage is earthquakes (53%), then river and rain flooding (42%). Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 1997.
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 Gardnerville faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
Earthquakes
River and rain flooding
Wildfire
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 Gardnerville’s grade
Earthquakes are 53% of the building damage FEMA expects in Gardnerville, and Gardnerville’s rate of earthquakes damage is in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts. Wildfire adds 5%, at a rate in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts.
D #37 of 42 in Nevada; higher expected damage per building than 93% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Gardnerville’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
The typical Nevada town has higher expected damage than 81% of U.S. towns; within the state, Gardnerville has more expected damage per building than 88% of Nevada towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $5.7M a year in losses across Gardnerville: $4.1M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Gardnerville flood? Rarely: 1 flood claim since 1997
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Gardnerville, from FEMA’s records: 0.3 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 94% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Gardnerville isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Douglas County.The storms Gardnerville remembers
None of the 9 disasters declared for Douglas County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Gardnerville itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 19971 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
Douglas County has had 9 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.
Also 13 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Douglas County, 2002–2025.
Old photos of Gardnerville after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Gardnerville archive →Gardnerville and its neighbors
Gardnerville is 2nd of the 4 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gardnerville Ranchos | Dmore damage than 88% | river and rain flooding | 69 |
| Gardnerville | Dmore damage than 93% | earthquakes | 1 |
| Minden | Dmore damage than 93% | earthquakes | 2 |
| East Valley | D−more damage than 96% | wildfire | — |
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 Gardnerville faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- 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.
- 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 Gardnerville
Is Gardnerville at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Gardnerville has higher expected damage per building than 93% of U.S. towns: D for hazard risk, #37 of 42 in Nevada. Most of the expected damage is earthquakes (53%) and river and rain flooding (42%). 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.
Does Gardnerville flood?
Flood insurance has paid 1 claim in Gardnerville since 1997, $7K in all, or 0.3 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 94% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Is Gardnerville 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 Douglas County, 32% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 3.0% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Gardnerville?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Gardnerville’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Gardnerville at risk from earthquakes?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (53%), and Gardnerville’s rate for it is in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Gardnerville.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Gardnerville’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.