Photo: Tma169 · CC BY-SA 4.0FEMA expects less hazard damage per building in Bowling Green than in 70% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bowling Green gets a B+ for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 70% of U.S. towns, #611 of 993 in Ohio. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (73%), then tornadoes (14%). Flood insurance has paid 2 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 Bowling Green 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
Tornadoes
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 Bowling Green’s grade
River and rain flooding is 73% of the building damage FEMA expects in Bowling Green, and Bowling Green’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 56% of U.S. census tracts. Ice storms add 3%, at a rate in the top 9% of U.S. census tracts.
B+ #611 of 993 in Ohio; lower expected damage per building than 70% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Bowling Green’s residents live in 8 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Ohio town has lower expected damage than 79% of U.S. towns; within the state, Bowling Green has more expected damage per building than 61% of Ohio towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $8.2M a year in losses across Bowling Green: $6.9M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Bowling Green flood? Rarely: 2 flood claims since 1982
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Bowling Green, from FEMA’s records: 0.2 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 98% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Bowling Green isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Wood County.The storms Bowling Green remembers
None of the 7 disasters declared for Wood County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Bowling Green itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 19821 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
- 19851 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
Wood County has had 7 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 Bowling Green after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Bowling Green archive →Bowling Green and its neighbors
Bowling Green is 3rd of the 3 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Center Township | A−less damage than 81% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Plain Township | B+less damage than 71% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Bowling Green | B+less damage than 70% | river and rain flooding | 2 |
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 Bowling Green 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.
- Pick your spot now: the lowest floor, an inside room, no windows.
- A watch means be ready; a warning means take cover now.
- Keep shoes and a flashlight by the bed.
- 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 Bowling Green
Is Bowling Green at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bowling Green has lower expected damage per building than 70% of U.S. towns: B+ for hazard risk, #611 of 993 in Ohio. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (73%) and tornadoes (14%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Bowling Green flood?
Flood insurance has paid 2 claims in Bowling Green since 1982, $18K in all, or 0.2 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 98% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Is Bowling Green 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 Wood County, 12% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.3% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Bowling Green?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Bowling Green’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Bowling Green at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (73%), and Bowling Green’s rate for it is lower than 56% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Bowling Green.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Bowling Green’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.