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2013-07-04 14 10 07 View of West Wendover in Nevada from a hill to the westPhoto: Famartin · CC BY-SA 3.0
C−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in West Wendover · FEMA

More hazard damage per building is expected in West Wendover than in 84% of U.S. towns, mostly from wildfire

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, West Wendover gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 84% of U.S. towns, #22 of 42 in Nevada. Most of that expected damage is wildfire (72%), then river and rain flooding (20%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

Wildfire 72%River and rain flooding 20%Earthquakes 6%

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

more than 84%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#22 of 42 in Nevada
Hazard risk
C−#22 of 42
in Nevada · higher than 84% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
Wildfire
72% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
0
of 5 declared for Elko County
By hazard

What West Wendover faces

Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.

Wildfire

72%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts

River and rain flooding

20%of expected building damage
Well below average · lower than 88% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Earthquakes

6%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 77% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Strong wind Hail Winter storms Tornadoes Cold waves Heat waves Landslides Lightning
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingHurricanesIce stormsAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts avalanches at 19% of West Wendover’s expected losses. Avalanches do little damage to buildings (0.0%), so they aren’t part of the grade.

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.

Flood risk changes street by street. Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.
Hazard risk grade

What’s behind West Wendover’s grade

Wildfire is 72% of the building damage FEMA expects in West Wendover, and West Wendover’s rate of wildfire damage is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts. Next is river and rain flooding at 20% (lower than 88% of U.S. census tracts).

Where West Wendover sits
West Wendover
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C− #22 of 42 in Nevada; higher expected damage per building than 84% of U.S. towns (21,298).

All of West Wendover’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.

What drives the damage to buildings
Wildfire72%River and rain flooding20%Earthquakes6%Everything else1%

The typical Nevada town has higher expected damage than 81% of U.S. towns; within the state, West Wendover has more expected damage per building than 51% of Nevada towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $2.4M a year in losses across West Wendover: $1.8M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of West Wendover’s 4,512 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Montello CDP (66 residents). FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s, the same for all of them. The flood claims below are the town’s own.
A shared figure. The grade describes the whole tract, not each street in it, and FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does West Wendover flood? No paid flood claims on record

FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in West Wendover. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.

of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

West Wendover isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Elko County.
Disasters

The storms West Wendover remembers

None of the 5 disasters declared for Elko County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching West Wendover itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.

Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in West WendoverElko County only

Elko County has had 5 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 11 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Elko County, 1999–2017.

Be ready

Get ready for what West Wendover faces

A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.

Wildfire
  • 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.
More from Ready.gov ↗
When the river rises
  • 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.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Earthquakes
  • Drop, cover and hold on.
  • Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
  • Know how to shut off the gas.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Before you buy or rent
  • 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.
When a storm is coming
Forecast and alertsWeather →911, the nearest ERSafety →

Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.

Questions about natural hazards in West Wendover

Is West Wendover at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, West Wendover has higher expected damage per building than 84% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk, #22 of 42 in Nevada. Most of the expected damage is wildfire (72%) and river and rain flooding (20%). 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 West Wendover 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 Elko County, 8% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.4% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in West Wendover?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for West Wendover’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.

Is West Wendover at risk from wildfire?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (72%), and West Wendover’s rate for it is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in West Wendover.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where West Wendover’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.