Photo: Ian Poellet (User:Werewombat) · CC BY-SA 4.0Storms, floods and disasters in Nehalem
Nehalem isn’t graded for hazard risk: Nehalem has 235 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more. Flood insurance has paid 13 claims here since 1981.
What Nehalem 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
Earthquakes
Tsunamis
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 Nehalem flood? Sometimes: 13 flood claims since 1981
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Nehalem, from FEMA’s records.
- The Winter storm1 claim · $2K
Nehalem is in FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 7) for its flood-proofing work.
Insurance rates: Tillamook County.3 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Nehalem
Disasters that paid out in Nehalem itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Nehalem), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2011Severe Winter Storm, Flooding, Mudslides, Landslides, and Debris Flows$54K to the City of Nehalem for repairs
- 2007Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides98 households applied for aid$74K aid approved1 flood claim paid that year
- 2006Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides$14K to the City of Nehalem for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
Tillamook County has had 20 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.
Also 1 FEMA wildfire suppression grant (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Tillamook County, 2020–2020.
Old photos of Nehalem after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Nehalem archive →Get ready for what Nehalem 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.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- Strong shaking or a sudden drop in the sea means head for high ground now.
- Learn the tsunami route signs near the shore.
- Stay away until officials say it’s safe.
- 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.
- Nehalem residents get 15% off flood insurance.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Questions about natural hazards in Nehalem
Does Nehalem flood?
Flood insurance has paid 13 claims in Nehalem since 1981, $228K in all. The most claims came from Winter storm (1).
Is Nehalem 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 Tillamook County, 30% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 5.7% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Nehalem?
Nehalem is in FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 7), which takes 15% off federal flood insurance policies for its flood-proofing work. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
What was the biggest storm in Nehalem?
By FEMA money that reached Nehalem, Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides (2007): 98 households applied for aid, $74K approved. By flood claims, Winter storm: 1 paid, $2K.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Nehalem.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Nehalem’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.