Photo: SilentMatt Psychedelic · CC BY-SA 4.0Less hazard damage per building is expected in Orange than in 95% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Orange gets an A+ for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 95% of U.S. towns, #100 of 993 in Ohio. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (85%), then tornadoes (11%). 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 Orange 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 Orange’s grade
River and rain flooding is 85% of the building damage FEMA expects in Orange, and Orange’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 76% of U.S. census tracts. Next is tornadoes at 11% (higher than 61% of U.S. census tracts).
A+ #100 of 993 in Ohio; lower expected damage per building than 95% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Orange’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, Orange has less expected damage per building than 90% of Ohio towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $884K a year in losses across Orange: $666K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Orange flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Orange. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Orange isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Cuyahoga County.The storms Orange remembers
None of the 15 disasters declared for Cuyahoga County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Orange itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
Cuyahoga County has had 15 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.
Orange and its neighbors
Orange is 2nd 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beachwood | A+less damage than 98% | river and rain flooding | 9 |
| Orange | A+less damage than 95% | river and rain flooding | 0 |
| Pepper Pike | Aless damage than 92% | river and rain flooding | 19 |
| Warrensville Heights | Aless damage than 87% | river and rain flooding | 8 |
| Moreland Hills | A−less damage than 85% | river and rain flooding | 4 |
| Woodmere | — | 641 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
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 Orange 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 Orange
Is Orange at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Orange has lower expected damage per building than 95% of U.S. towns: A+ for hazard risk, #100 of 993 in Ohio. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (85%) and tornadoes (11%). 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 Orange 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 Cuyahoga County, 38% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.2% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Orange?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Orange’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Orange at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (85%), and Orange’s rate for it is lower than 76% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Orange.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Orange’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.