Photo: Jaknouse · CC BY-SA 3.0FEMA puts Rome Township’s expected hazard damage per building above that of 79% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Rome Township gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 79% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (94%). 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 Rome 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 Rome Township’s grade
River and rain flooding is 94% of the building damage FEMA expects in Rome Township, and Rome Township’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 90% of U.S. census tracts.
C− higher expected damage per building than 79% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Rome Township’s residents live in 3 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $415K a year in losses across Rome Township: $356K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Rome Township flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Rome Township. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Rome 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: Athens County.The storms Rome Township remembers
None of the 15 disasters declared for Athens County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Rome Township itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
Athens 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.
Rome Township and its neighbors
Rome Township is 4th 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Decatur Township | Aless damage than 91% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Canaan Township | C+more damage than 60% | river and rain flooding | 2 |
| Carthage Township | Cmore damage than 73% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Rome Township | C−more damage than 79% | river and rain flooding | 0 |
| Troy Township | C−more damage than 80% | river and rain flooding | 48 |
| Bern Township | — | 352 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 Rome 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 Rome Township
Is Rome Township at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Rome Township has higher expected damage per building than 79% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (94%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Rome 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 Athens County, 6% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.8% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Rome Township?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Rome Township’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Rome Township at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (94%), and Rome Township’s rate for it is higher than 90% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Rome Township.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Rome 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.