Photo: Nyttend · Public domainOn FEMA’s figures, Bay Township faces more hazard damage per building than 90% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bay Township gets a D for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 90% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (90%). Flood insurance has paid 33 claims here since 1982.
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 Bay Township 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 Bay Township’s grade
River and rain flooding is 90% of the building damage FEMA expects in Bay Township, and Bay Township’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts. Ice storms add 1%, at a rate in the top 8% of U.S. census tracts.
D higher expected damage per building than 90% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Bay Township’s residents live in 2 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $967K a year in losses across Bay Township: $865K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Bay Township flood? Sometimes: 33 flood claims since 1982
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Bay Township, from FEMA’s records: 35.6 per 1,000 homes, more than 90% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Bay Township isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Ottawa County.The storms Bay Township remembers
None of the 10 disasters declared for Ottawa County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Bay Township itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 19988 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes, declared for Ottawa County
- 19823 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
- 19873 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
Ottawa County has had 10 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.
Old photos of Bay Township after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Bay Township archive →Bay Township and its neighbors
Bay Township is 5th of the 5 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Portage Township | B+less damage than 72% | river and rain flooding | 4 |
| Port Clinton | B−less damage than 53% | river and rain flooding | 151 |
| Erie Township | Dmore damage than 88% | river and rain flooding | 5 |
| Salem Township | Dmore damage than 88% | river and rain flooding | 12 |
| Bay Township | Dmore damage than 90% | river and rain flooding | 33 |
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 Bay Township 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 Bay Township
Is Bay Township at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bay Township has higher expected damage per building than 90% of U.S. towns: D for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (90%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Bay Township flood?
Flood insurance has paid 33 claims in Bay Township since 1982, $229K in all, or 35.6 per 1,000 homes, more than 90% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Is Bay Township 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 Ottawa County, 8% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 2.1% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Bay Township?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Bay Township’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Bay Township at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (90%), and Bay Township’s rate for it is in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Bay Township.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Bay Township’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.