Photo: Gorup de Besanez · CC BY-SA 4.0Storms, floods and disasters in Depew
Depew isn’t graded for hazard risk: Depew has 391 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more.
What Depew 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
Wildfire
Ice storms
Hail
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.
Does Depew flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Depew. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Depew isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Creek County.5 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Depew
Disasters that paid out in Depew itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Depew), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2007Severe Winter Storms$23K to the Town of Depew for repairs
- 2007Severe Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes1 households applied for aid$1K aid approved$10K to the Town of Depew for repairs
- 2007Severe Winter Storms and Flooding$5K to the Town of Depew for repairs
- 2003Severe Storms and Tornadoes4 households applied for aid$10K aid approved
- 2000Severe Winter Ice Storm$21K to the Town of Depew for repairs
Creek County has had 25 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.
Also 14 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Creek County, 2000–2025.
Old photos of Depew after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Depew archive →Get ready for what Depew 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.
- Clear dead leaves and brush within 5 feet of the house.
- Sign up for local alerts and know two ways out.
- Keep N95 masks for smoky days.
- Ice brings down trees and lines: plan for days without power.
- Run a generator outside, far from doors and windows.
- Keep sand or salt by the door.
- Park in a garage or under cover when storms are forecast.
- Stay away from windows while it falls.
- Photograph roof and car damage for your insurer.
- 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 Depew
Is Depew 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 Creek County, 10% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.3% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Depew?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Depew’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 Depew?
By FEMA money that reached Depew, Severe Winter Storms (2007): $23K to the Town of Depew for repairs.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Depew.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Depew’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.