Buffalo Valley School · Photo: Brian Stansberry · CC BY 3.0FEMA expects about as much hazard damage per building in Baxter as in the typical U.S. town, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Baxter gets a B− for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 54% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (60%), then tornadoes (16%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.
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
What Baxter 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
Earthquakes
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.
What’s behind Baxter’s grade
River and rain flooding is 60% of the building damage FEMA expects in Baxter, and Baxter’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 58% of U.S. census tracts. Tornadoes add 16%, at a rate in the top 7% of U.S. census tracts.
B− lower expected damage per building than 54% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Baxter’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $427K a year in losses across Baxter: $224K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Baxter flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Baxter. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Baxter isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Putnam County.3 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Baxter
Disasters that paid out in Baxter itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Baxter), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2020Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding72 households applied for aid$8K aid approved
- 2010Severe Storms and Flooding$30K to the Town of Baxter for repairs
- 2010Severe Storms, Flooding, Straight-line Winds, and Tornadoes3 households applied for aid$5K aid approved$15K to the Town of Baxter for repairs
Putnam County has had 15 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then winter storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Old photos of Baxter after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Baxter archive →Get ready for what Baxter 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.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- 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 Baxter
Is Baxter at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Baxter has lower expected damage per building than 54% of U.S. towns: B− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (60%) and tornadoes (16%). 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 Baxter 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 Putnam County, 14% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.2% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Baxter?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Baxter’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 Baxter?
By FEMA money that reached Baxter, Severe Storms and Flooding (2010): $30K to the Town of Baxter for repairs.
Is Baxter at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (60%), and Baxter’s rate for it is lower than 58% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Baxter.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Baxter’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.