Osceola Town Hall · Photo: Smerdis · CC BY-SA 4.0Storms, floods and disasters in Osceola
Osceola isn’t graded for hazard risk: Osceola has 134 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more.
What Osceola 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.
Does Osceola flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Osceola. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Osceola isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Lewis County.5 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Osceola
Disasters that paid out in Osceola itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Osceola), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2011Severe Storms, Flooding, Tornadoes, and Straight-line Winds$15K to the Town of Osceola for repairs
- 2007Record Snow and Near Record Snow$14K to the Town of Osceola for repairs
- 2004Snow$8K to the Town of Osceola for repairs
- 2000Severe Storms and Flooding$41K to the Town of Osceola for repairs
- 1999Snow$7K to the Town of Osceola for repairs
Lewis County has had 22 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often winter storms, then severe storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees; the 2001 World Trade Center declarations.
Old photos of Osceola after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Osceola archive →Osceola and its neighbors
How expected damage per building compares across the town line. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| West Turin | B+less damage than 67% | river and rain flooding | 8 |
| Redfield | — | 386 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Lewis | — | 913 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Montague | — | 130 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Florence | — | not graded yet | |
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 Osceola 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 Osceola
Is Osceola 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 Lewis County, 0.4% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.
How much is flood insurance in Osceola?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Osceola’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 Osceola?
By FEMA money that reached Osceola, Severe Storms and Flooding (2000): $41K to the Town of Osceola for repairs.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Osceola.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Osceola’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.