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FtPierre mainPhoto: Alanscottwalker · CC BY-SA 4.0
DHazard risk
Natural hazards in Fort Pierre · FEMA

FEMA puts Fort Pierre’s expected hazard damage per building above that of 95% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Fort Pierre gets a D for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 95% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (91%). Flood insurance has paid 67 claims here since 1982.

River and rain flooding 91%Wildfire 3%Tornadoes 1%

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 95%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
D
in South Dakota · higher than 95% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
91% of expected building damage
Flood claims
67
paid since 1982 · $1.3M
Disasters paid out here
4
of 12 declared for Stanley County

What stands out about Fort Pierre’s natural hazards

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

Moved out of harm’s way4 flood-prone properties bought out and cleared with FEMA grants.Remembers 201160 flood claims were paid for 2011 alone, the most of any year.
By hazard

What Fort Pierre 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

91%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Wildfire Tornadoes Strong wind Winter storms top 0% Ice storms Hail Earthquakes Cold waves Heat waves Landslides Lightning
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingHurricanesAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity

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 Fort Pierre’s grade

River and rain flooding is 91% of the building damage FEMA expects in Fort Pierre, and Fort Pierre’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts. Wildfire adds 3%, at a rate in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Fort Pierre sits
Fort Pierre
Least damageMiddleMost damage

D higher expected damage per building than 95% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding91%Wildfire3%Everything else6%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $3.0M a year in losses across Fort Pierre: $2.6M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Fort Pierre’s 2,115 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 Fort Pierre flood? Sometimes: 67 flood claims since 1982

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Fort Pierre, from FEMA’s records: 57.0 per 1,000 homes, more than 93% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1982: 3 claims1983: 0 claims1984: 0 claims1985: 0 claims1986: 0 claims1987: 0 claims1988: 0 claims1989: 0 claims1990: 0 claims1991: 0 claims1992: 0 claims1993: 0 claims1994: 0 claims1995: 0 claims1996: 0 claims1997: 3 claims1998: 0 claims1999: 1 claim2000: 0 claims2001: 0 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 0 claims2004: 0 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 60 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims198219972011
19822026
Biggest named events
  • The Late spring storms44 claims · $919K
67
paid claims since 1982
$1.3M
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$19K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Stanley County.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
4flood-prone properties bought out and cleared
Disasters

4 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Fort Pierre

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

  1. 2022Severe Winter Storms and Snowstorm$19K to the City of Fort Pierre for repairs
  2. 2015Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding$84K to the City of Fort Pierre for repairs
  3. 2011Flooding373 households applied for aid$1.4M aid approved$6.2M to the City of Fort Pierre for repairs60 flood claims paid that year
  4. 2008Severe Storms and Flooding$15K to the City of Fort Pierre for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Fort PierreStanley County only

Stanley County has had 12 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.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Fort Pierre archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Fort Pierre 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 ↗
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 Fort Pierre

Is Fort Pierre at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Fort Pierre has higher expected damage per building than 95% of U.S. towns: D for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (91%). 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.

Does Fort Pierre flood?

Flood insurance has paid 67 claims in Fort Pierre since 1982, $1.3M in all, or 57.0 per 1,000 homes, more than 93% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Late spring storms (44).

Is Fort Pierre 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 Stanley County, 21% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 7.4% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Fort Pierre?

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

By FEMA money that reached Fort Pierre, Flooding (2011): 373 households applied for aid, $1.4M approved, and $6.2M to the City of Fort Pierre for repairs. By flood claims, Late spring storms: 44 paid, $919K.

Is Fort Pierre at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (91%), and Fort Pierre’s rate for it is in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Fort Pierre.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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