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Tackett Underwood BuildingTackett Underwood Building · Photo: Ammodramus · CC0
B−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Gregory · FEMA

FEMA expects about as much hazard damage per building in Gregory as in the typical U.S. town, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Gregory gets a B− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 54% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (74%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

River and rain flooding 74%Tornadoes 10%Wildfire 5%

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 54%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
B−
in South Dakota · higher than 54% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
74% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
0
of 19 declared for Gregory County
By hazard

What Gregory 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

74%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 63% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 2 years in the area

Tornadoes

10%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 80% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 7 years in the area

Wildfire

5%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 7% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Hail Strong wind Winter storms top 1% Ice storms Earthquakes Heat waves top 1% Lightning Cold waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingHurricanesAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 47% of Gregory’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 Gregory’s grade

River and rain flooding is 74% of the building damage FEMA expects in Gregory, and Gregory’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 63% of U.S. census tracts. Wildfire adds 5%, at a rate in the top 7% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Gregory sits
Gregory
Least damageMiddleMost damage

B− higher expected damage per building than 54% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding74%Tornadoes10%Wildfire5%Everything else11%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $2.2M a year in losses across Gregory: $894K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Gregory’s 1,221 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Dallas town (89 residents) and Dixon township (88 residents) and Edens township (77 residents) and Landing Creek township (10 residents). FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s, the same for all of them. 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 Gregory flood? No paid flood claims on record

FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Gregory. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.

of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Gregory County.
Disasters

The storms Gregory remembers

None of the 19 disasters declared for Gregory County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Gregory itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.

Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in GregoryGregory County only

Gregory County has had 19 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.

Be ready

Get ready for what Gregory 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 ↗
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 Gregory

Is Gregory at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Gregory has higher expected damage per building than 54% of U.S. towns: B− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (74%) and tornadoes (10%). 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 Gregory 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 Gregory County, 0.0% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.

How much is flood insurance in Gregory?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Gregory’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.

Is Gregory at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (74%), and Gregory’s rate for it is higher than 63% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Gregory.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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