Photo: Aesopposea · CC BY-SA 3.0More hazard damage per building is expected in Ashville than in 80% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Ashville gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns, #955 of 993 in Ohio. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (90%). 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 Ashville 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 Ashville’s grade
River and rain flooding is 90% of the building damage FEMA expects in Ashville, and Ashville’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 89% of U.S. census tracts. Ice storms add 1%, at a rate in the top 9% of U.S. census tracts.
C− #955 of 993 in Ohio; higher expected damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Ashville’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
The typical Ohio town has lower expected damage than 79% of U.S. towns; within the state, Ashville has more expected damage per building than 96% of Ohio towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.7M a year in losses across Ashville: $1.5M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Ashville flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Ashville. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Ashville isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Pickaway County.4 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Ashville
Disasters that paid out in Ashville itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Village of Ashville), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2019Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslide1 households applied for aid$2K aid approved
- 2012Severe Storms and Straight-line Winds$10K to the Village of Ashville for repairs
- 2008Severe Wind Storm Associated with Tropical Depression Ike$14K to the Village of Ashville for repairs
- 2004Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, and Mudslides33 households applied for aid$21K aid approved$32K to the Village of Ashville for repairs
Pickaway County has had 11 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.
Old photos of Ashville after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Ashville archive →Ashville and its neighbors
Ashville is 4th 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Bloomfield | Bless damage than 64% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Walnut Township | B−more damage than 52% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Harrison Township | Cmore damage than 69% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Ashville | C−more damage than 80% | river and rain flooding | 0 |
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 Ashville 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 Ashville
Is Ashville at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Ashville has higher expected damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk, #955 of 993 in Ohio. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (90%). 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 Ashville 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 Pickaway County, 13% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.3% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Ashville?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Ashville’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 Ashville?
By FEMA money that reached Ashville, Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, and Mudslides (2004): 33 households applied for aid, $21K approved, and $32K to the Village of Ashville for repairs.
Is Ashville at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (90%), and Ashville’s rate for it is higher than 89% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Ashville.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Ashville’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.