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West Main StreetPhoto: SCSCC · CC BY-SA 4.0
C−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Rarden Township · FEMA

FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Rarden Township than in 76% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Rarden Township gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 76% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (93%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

River and rain flooding 93%Tornadoes 3%Strong wind 2%

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

more than 76%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
C−
in Ohio · higher than 76% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
93% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
2
of 15 declared for Scioto County
By hazard

What Rarden 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

93%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 88% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 4 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Tornadoes Strong wind Earthquakes Hail Ice storms Hurricanes Winter storms Landslides top 5% Lightning Wildfire Cold waves Heat waves
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts heat waves at 12% of Rarden Township’s expected losses. Heat waves do little damage to buildings (0.0%), so they aren’t part of the grade.

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.

Flood risk changes street by street. Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.
Hazard risk grade

What’s behind Rarden Township’s grade

River and rain flooding is 93% of the building damage FEMA expects in Rarden Township, and Rarden Township’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 88% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Rarden Township sits
Rarden Township
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C− higher expected damage per building than 76% of U.S. towns (21,298).

All of Rarden Township’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding93%Tornadoes3%Everything else4%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $378K a year in losses across Rarden Township: $264K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Rarden Township’s 1,106 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Rarden village (146 residents) and Otway village (92 residents). FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s, the same for all of them. The flood claims below are the township’s own.
A shared figure. The grade describes the whole tract, not each street in it, and FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Rarden Township flood? No paid flood claims on record

FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Rarden Township. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.

of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

Rarden 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: Scioto County.
Disasters

2 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Rarden Township

Disasters that paid out in Rarden Township itself (aid to households or repair grants to Rarden Township), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.

  1. 2011Severe Storms and Flooding$12K to Rarden Township for repairs
  2. 2003Severe Winter Storm and Record/near Record Snow$18K to Rarden Township for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Rarden TownshipScioto County only

Scioto 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.

Were you here?

Old photos of Rarden Township after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Rarden Township archive →
Next door

Rarden Township and its neighbors

Rarden Township is 5th of the 6 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Camp Creek Township: hazard risk CSunfish Township: hazard risk CBrush Creek Township: hazard risk C−Morgan Township: hazard risk C−Franklin Township: hazard risk A−Camp Creek TownshipSunfish TownshipBrush Creek TownshipMorgan TownshipFranklin TownshipRarden Township
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
Franklin TownshipA−less damage than 81%river and rain flooding4
Sunfish TownshipCmore damage than 72%river and rain flooding12
Camp Creek TownshipCmore damage than 72%river and rain flooding—
Morgan TownshipC−more damage than 76%river and rain flooding—
Rarden TownshipC−more damage than 76%river and rain flooding0
Brush Creek TownshipC−more damage than 82%river and rain flooding23

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.

Be ready

Get ready for what Rarden 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.

When the river rises
  • 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.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Before you buy or rent
  • 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.
When a storm is coming
Forecast and alertsWeather →911, the nearest ERSafety →

Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.

Questions about natural hazards in Rarden Township

Is Rarden Township at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Rarden Township has higher expected damage per building than 76% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (93%). 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 Rarden 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 Scioto County, 10% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.7% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Rarden Township?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Rarden Township’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 Rarden Township?

By FEMA money that reached Rarden Township, Severe Winter Storm and Record/near Record Snow (2003): $18K to Rarden Township for repairs.

Is Rarden Township at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (93%), and Rarden Township’s rate for it is higher than 88% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Rarden Township.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Rarden 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.