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Downtown El Reno Oklahoma 5-31-2014Photo: katsrcool · CC BY 2.0
C+Hazard risk
Natural hazards in El Reno · FEMA

El Reno’s building-damage rate from hail is in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, El Reno gets a C+ for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 61% of U.S. towns, #31 of 131 in Oklahoma. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (56%), then hail (16%). Flood insurance has paid 59 claims here since 1978.

River and rain flooding 56%Hail 16%Ice storms 14%

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 61%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#31 of 131 in Oklahoma
Hazard risk
C+#31 of 131
in Oklahoma · higher than 61% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
56% of expected building damage
Flood claims
59
paid since 1978 · $1.0M
Flooded more than once
7
properties · 1 “severe repetitive loss”
Disasters paid out here
20
of 31 declared for Canadian County

What stands out about El Reno’s natural hazards

From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.

Made safer with FEMA grants60 storm safe rooms built with FEMA grants.Remembers 200718 flood claims were paid for 2007 alone, the most of any year.
By hazard

What El Reno 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

56%of expected building damage
About average · lower than 50% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area

Hail

16%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 11 times a year in the area

Ice storms

14%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area

Tornadoes

10%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 85% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 19 years in the area
Smaller shares here
 Earthquakes Wildfire Strong wind Winter storms Lightning Cold waves Hurricanes Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 16% of El Reno’s expected losses. Cold waves do little damage to buildings (0.1%), 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 El Reno’s grade

River and rain flooding is 56% of the building damage FEMA expects in El Reno, and El Reno’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 50% of U.S. census tracts. Hail adds 16%, at a rate in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts.

Where El Reno sits
El Reno
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C+ #31 of 131 in Oklahoma; higher expected damage per building than 61% of U.S. towns (21,298).

El Reno’s residents live in 7 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding56%Hail16%Ice storms14%Everything else15%

The typical Oklahoma town has higher expected damage than 69% of U.S. towns; within the state, El Reno has less expected damage per building than 77% of Oklahoma towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $8.0M a year in losses across El Reno: $3.9M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

A firm figure. It combines 7 census tracts by where El Reno’s residents live. FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims and disasters below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does El Reno flood? Sometimes: 59 flood claims since 1978

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in El Reno, from FEMA’s records: 8.6 per 1,000 homes, more than 71% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1978: 1 claim1979: 1 claim1980: 0 claims1981: 0 claims1982: 0 claims1983: 4 claims1984: 0 claims1985: 0 claims1986: 1 claim1987: 2 claims1988: 0 claims1989: 0 claims1990: 1 claim1991: 0 claims1992: 0 claims1993: 3 claims1994: 0 claims1995: 1 claim1996: 0 claims1997: 1 claim1998: 3 claims1999: 0 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 0 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 0 claims2004: 0 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 18 claims2008: 3 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 2 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 9 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 1 claim2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 1 claim2019: 3 claims2020: 2 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 2 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims198320072013
19782026
Biggest named events
  • The Early summer storms1 claim · $20K
59
paid claims since 1978
$1.0M
paid to owners
7
homes flooded more than once
$17K
average claim
Homes that flooded again and again
FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (1)Flooded 2+ times
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

El Reno isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Canadian County.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
60storm safe rooms built
Disasters

20 federal disasters brought FEMA money to El Reno

Disasters that paid out in El Reno itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of El Reno), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.

  1. 2021Severe Winter Storms68 households applied for aid$34K aid approved$10K to the City of El Reno for repairs
  2. 2020Severe Winter Storm$1.5M to the City of El Reno for repairs2 flood claims paid that year
  3. 2019Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding123 households applied for aid$510K aid approved$2.1M to the City of El Reno for repairs3 flood claims paid that year
  4. 2015Severe Winter Storms and Flooding$44K to the City of El Reno for repairs
  5. 2015Severe Winter Storms and Flooding$2.0M to the City of El Reno for repairs
  6. 2015Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding37 households applied for aid$15K aid approved$48K to the City of El Reno for repairs
Show all 20
  1. 2013Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding763 households applied for aid$710K aid approved$218K to the City of El Reno for repairs9 flood claims paid that year
  2. 2011Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding19 households applied for aid$110K aid approved$36K to the City of El Reno for repairs2 flood claims paid that year
  3. 2010Severe Winter Storm$12K to the City of El Reno for repairs
  4. 2009Severe Winter Storm$13K to the City of El Reno for repairs
  5. 2007Severe Winter Storms$79K to the City of El Reno for repairs
  6. 2007Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding225 households applied for aid$788K aid approved$468K to the City of El Reno for repairs
  7. 2007Severe Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes69 households applied for aid$69K aid approved$58K to the City of El Reno for repairs
  8. 2007Severe Storms, Tornadoes and Flooding$82K to the City of El Reno for repairs
  9. 2007Severe Winter Storms$83K to the City of El Reno for repairs
  10. 2005Extreme Wildfire Threat1 households applied for aid$7K to the City of El Reno for repairs
  11. 2003Severe Storms and Tornadoes1 households applied for aid$671 aid approved
  12. 2002Severe Winter Ice Storm$204K to the City of El Reno for repairs
  13. 2001Severe Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes$66K to the City of El Reno for repairs
  14. 2000Severe Winter Ice Storm$119K to the City of El Reno for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in El RenoCanadian County only

Canadian County has had 31 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 2 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Canadian County, 2011–2026.

Were you here?

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

Add to the El Reno archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what El Reno 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 ↗
Hail
  • 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.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Ice storms
  • 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.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Tornado warnings
  • 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.
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 El Reno

Is El Reno at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, El Reno has higher expected damage per building than 61% of U.S. towns: C+ for hazard risk, #31 of 131 in Oklahoma. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (56%) and hail (16%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Does El Reno flood?

Flood insurance has paid 59 claims in El Reno since 1978, $1.0M in all, or 8.6 per 1,000 homes, more than 71% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 7 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Early summer storms (1).

Is El Reno 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 Canadian County, 11% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.4% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in El Reno?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for El Reno’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 El Reno?

By FEMA money that reached El Reno, Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding (2019): 123 households applied for aid, $510K approved, and $2.1M to the City of El Reno for repairs. By flood claims, Early summer storms: 1 paid, $20K.

Is El Reno at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (56%), and El Reno’s rate for it is lower than 50% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in El Reno.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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