Hoffelt Drug Store · Photo: WikiSandie · CC BY-SA 4.0Storms, floods and disasters in Estelline
Estelline isn’t graded for hazard risk: Estelline has 831 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more. Flood insurance has paid 7 claims here since 1997.
What Estelline 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
Tornadoes
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 Estelline flood? Rarely: 7 flood claims since 1997
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Estelline, from FEMA’s records.
- The Severe flooding1 claim · $2K
Estelline isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Hamlin County.The storms Estelline remembers
None of the 19 disasters declared for Hamlin County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Estelline itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 19976 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Flooding, Sever Winter Storms,heavy Rains High Winds, declared for Hamlin County
- 20011 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, and Ice Jams, declared for Hamlin County
Hamlin County has had 19 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often floods, then severe storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Old photos of Estelline after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Estelline archive →Get ready for what Estelline 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.
- 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.
- 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 Estelline
Does Estelline flood?
Flood insurance has paid 7 claims in Estelline since 1997, $33K in all. The most claims came from Severe flooding (1).
Is Estelline 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 Hamlin County, 1.7% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.
How much is flood insurance in Estelline?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Estelline’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 Estelline?
By flood claims, Severe flooding: 1 paid, $2K.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Estelline.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Estelline’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.