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Yale Downtown Masonic 7-2026Photo: TulGuy · CC BY 4.0
DHazard risk
Natural hazards in Yale · FEMA

FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Yale than in 85% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Yale gets a D for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 85% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (57%), then tornadoes (16%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

River and rain flooding 57%Tornadoes 16%Hail 11%

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 85%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
D
in Oklahoma · higher than 85% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
57% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
8
of 27 declared for Payne County
By hazard

What Yale 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

57%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 78% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area

Tornadoes

16%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 10 years in the area

Hail

11%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

Wildfire

8%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Strong wind Earthquakes Winter storms Lightning Hurricanes Cold waves 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 27% of Yale’s expected losses. Cold 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 Yale’s grade

River and rain flooding is 57% of the building damage FEMA expects in Yale, and Yale’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 78% of U.S. census tracts. Tornadoes add 16%, at a rate in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Yale sits
Yale
Least damageMiddleMost damage

D higher expected damage per building than 85% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding57%Tornadoes16%Hail11%Everything else17%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $741K a year in losses across Yale: $357K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Yale’s 1,059 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract. FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s. The flood claims below are the town’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 Yale flood? No paid flood claims on record

FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Yale. 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

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

Insurance rates: Payne County.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
3storm safe rooms built
Disasters

8 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Yale

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

  1. 2025Wildfires and Straight-line Winds14 households applied for aid$256K aid approved
  2. 2023Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, and Tornadoes$615K to the City of Yale for repairs
  3. 2020Severe Winter Storm$11K to the City of Yale for repairs
  4. 2019Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding2 households applied for aid$30K aid approved$39K to the City of Yale for repairs
  5. 2009Severe Winter Storm$10K to the City of Yale for repairs
  6. 2007Severe Winter Storms$85K to the City of Yale for repairs
Show all 8
  1. 2007Severe Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes1 households applied for aid$14K to the City of Yale for repairs
  2. 2002Severe Ice Storm$10K to the City of Yale for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in YalePayne County only

Payne County has had 27 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 7 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Payne County, 2006–2025.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Yale archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Yale 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 ↗
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 ↗
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 ↗
Wildfire
  • 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.
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 Yale

Is Yale at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Yale has higher expected damage per building than 85% of U.S. towns: D for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (57%) and tornadoes (16%). 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 Yale 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 Payne County, 15% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.4% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Yale?

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

By FEMA money that reached Yale, Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, and Tornadoes (2023): $615K to the City of Yale for repairs.

Is Yale at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (57%), and Yale’s rate for it is higher than 78% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Yale.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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