FEMA expects less hazard damage per building in Nellis AFB than almost anywhere in the U.S., mostly from earthquakes
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Nellis AFB gets an A+ for hazard risk: among the lowest expected damage per building of U.S. towns, #1 of 42 in Nevada. Most of that expected damage is earthquakes (86%), then river and rain flooding (11%). 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 Nellis AFB 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
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 Nellis AFB’s grade
Earthquakes are 86% of the building damage FEMA expects in Nellis AFB, and Nellis AFB’s rate of earthquakes damage is higher than 84% of U.S. census tracts. Next is river and rain flooding at 11% (among the lowest of U.S. census tracts).
A+ #1 of 42 in Nevada; among the lowest expected damage per building of U.S. towns (21,298).
Nellis AFB’s residents live in 3 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Nevada town has higher expected damage than 81% of U.S. towns; within the state, Nellis AFB has less expected damage per building than 100% of Nevada towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.2M a year in losses across Nellis AFB: $489K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Nellis AFB flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Nellis AFB. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Nellis AFB isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Clark County.The storms Nellis AFB remembers
None of the 6 disasters declared for Clark County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Nellis AFB itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
Clark County has had 6 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then winter storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Also 5 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Clark County, 2002–2013.
Nellis AFB and its neighbors
Nellis AFB has the lowest expected damage per building of the 3 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nellis AFB | A+among the lowest damage | earthquakes | 0 |
| North Las Vegas | Aless damage than 88% | river and rain flooding | 1 |
| Sunrise Manor | B+less damage than 70% | river and rain flooding | 52 |
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 Nellis AFB 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.
- 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 Nellis AFB
Is Nellis AFB at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Nellis AFB has among the lowest expected damage per building of U.S. towns: A+ for hazard risk, #1 of 42 in Nevada. Most of the expected damage is earthquakes (86%) and river and rain flooding (11%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Nellis AFB 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 Clark County, 30% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.2% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Nellis AFB?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Nellis AFB’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Nellis AFB at risk from earthquakes?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (86%), and Nellis AFB’s rate for it is higher than 84% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Nellis AFB.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Nellis AFB’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.