Sweep Hotel · Photo: Ammodramus · CC0Storms, floods and disasters in Plankinton
Plankinton isn’t graded for hazard risk: Plankinton has 603 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more. Flood insurance has paid 2 claims here since 2019.
What Plankinton 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
Wildfire
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 Plankinton flood? Rarely: 2 flood claims since 2019
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Plankinton, from FEMA’s records.
Plankinton isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Aurora County.6 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Plankinton
Disasters that paid out in Plankinton itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Plankinton), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2022Severe Storm, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding$42K to the City of Plankinton for repairs
- 2019Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding13 households applied for aid$9K aid approved$58K to the City of Plankinton for repairs
- 2019Severe Winter Storm, Snowstorm, and Flooding$5K to the City of Plankinton for repairs
- 2011Flooding$4K to the City of Plankinton for repairs
- 2010Flooding$11K to the City of Plankinton for repairs
- 2005Severe Winter Storm$35K to the City of Plankinton for repairs
Aurora County has had 20 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 Plankinton after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Plankinton archive →Get ready for what Plankinton 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.
- 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.
- 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 Plankinton
Does Plankinton flood?
Flood insurance has paid 2 claims in Plankinton since 2019, $100K in all.
Is Plankinton 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 Aurora County, 15% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.1% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Plankinton?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Plankinton’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 Plankinton?
By FEMA money that reached Plankinton, Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding (2019): 13 households applied for aid, $9K approved, and $58K to the City of Plankinton for repairs.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Plankinton.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Plankinton’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.