Photo: Photo by and ©2006 Dustin M. Ramsey (Kralizec!) · CC BY-SA 2.5FEMA puts Oak Harbor’s expected hazard damage per building above that of 91% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Oak Harbor gets a D for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 91% of U.S. towns, #985 of 993 in Ohio. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (90%). Flood insurance has paid 41 claims here since 1980.
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 stands out about Oak Harbor’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Oak Harbor 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 Oak Harbor’s grade
River and rain flooding is 90% of the building damage FEMA expects in Oak Harbor, and Oak Harbor’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 #985 of 993 in Ohio; higher expected damage per building than 91% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Oak Harbor’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, Oak Harbor has more expected damage per building than 99% of Ohio towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.9M a year in losses across Oak Harbor: $1.7M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Oak Harbor flood? Sometimes: 41 flood claims since 1980
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Oak Harbor, from FEMA’s records: 33.0 per 1,000 homes, more than 89% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Oak Harbor 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.1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Oak Harbor
Disasters that paid out in Oak Harbor itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Village of Oak Harbor), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2002Severe Storms and Tornadoes5 households applied for aid$3K aid approved
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 Oak Harbor after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Oak Harbor archive →Get ready for what Oak Harbor 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 Oak Harbor
Is Oak Harbor at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Oak Harbor has higher expected damage per building than 91% of U.S. towns: D for hazard risk, #985 of 993 in Ohio. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (90%) and tornadoes (5%). 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.
Does Oak Harbor flood?
Flood insurance has paid 41 claims in Oak Harbor since 1980, $340K in all, or 33.0 per 1,000 homes, more than 89% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 4 properties have flooded more than once.
Is Oak Harbor 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 Oak Harbor?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Oak Harbor’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 Oak Harbor?
By FEMA money that reached Oak Harbor, Severe Storms and Tornadoes (2002): 5 households applied for aid, $3K approved.
Is Oak Harbor at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (90%), and Oak Harbor’s rate for it is in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Oak Harbor.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Oak Harbor’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.