Photo: Leaflet · CC BY-SA 3.0FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Abernathy than in 83% of U.S. towns, mostly from hail
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Abernathy gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 83% of U.S. towns, #580 of 642 in Texas. Most of that expected damage is hail (60%), then river and rain flooding (20%). 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 stands out about Abernathy’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Abernathy faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
Hail
River and rain flooding
Tornadoes
Strong wind
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 Abernathy’s grade
Hail is 60% of the building damage FEMA expects in Abernathy, and Abernathy’s rate of hail damage is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts. Strong wind adds 6%, at a rate in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts.
C− #580 of 642 in Texas; higher expected damage per building than 83% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Abernathy’s residents live in 2 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Texas town has higher expected damage than 50% of U.S. towns; within the state, Abernathy has more expected damage per building than 90% of Texas towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $5.6M a year in losses across Abernathy: $1.3M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Abernathy flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Abernathy. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Abernathy isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Lubbock County.The storms Abernathy remembers
None of the 15 disasters declared for Lubbock County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Abernathy itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
Lubbock County has had 15 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then hurricanes and tropical storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Get ready for what Abernathy faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- Park in a garage or under cover when storms are forecast.
- Stay away from windows while it falls.
- Photograph roof and car damage for your insurer.
- 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.
- Trim dead limbs over the house and driveway.
- Tie down trash cans and outdoor furniture.
- Stay clear of downed lines and call the utility.
- 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 Abernathy
Is Abernathy at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Abernathy has higher expected damage per building than 83% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk, #580 of 642 in Texas. Most of the expected damage is hail (60%) and river and rain flooding (20%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Abernathy 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 Lubbock County, 11% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.8% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Abernathy?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Abernathy’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Abernathy at risk from hail?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (60%), and Abernathy’s rate for it is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Abernathy.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Abernathy’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.