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C−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Edinburg · FEMA

FEMA puts Edinburg’s expected hazard damage per building above that of 75% of U.S. towns, mostly from hurricanes

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Edinburg gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 75% of U.S. towns, #512 of 642 in Texas. Most of that expected damage is hurricanes (63%), then river and rain flooding (29%). Flood insurance has paid 349 claims here since 1979.

Hurricanes 63%River and rain flooding 29%Hail 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 75%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#512 of 642 in Texas
Hazard risk
C−#512 of 642
in Texas · higher than 75% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
Hurricanes
63% of expected building damage
Flood claims
349
paid since 1979 · $5.7M
Flooded more than once
39
properties · 4 “severe repetitive loss”
Disasters paid out here
13
of 26 declared for Hidalgo County

What stands out about Edinburg’s natural hazards

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

349 paid flood claims since 1979$5.7M in all; 39 properties flooded more than once.Made safer with FEMA grants6 storm safe rooms built; 1 building retrofitted against wind with FEMA grants.Remembers 1980121 flood claims were paid for 1980 alone, the most of any year.
By hazard

What Edinburg faces

Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.

Hurricanes

63%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 6% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 8 years in the area

River and rain flooding

29%of expected building damage
Below average · lower than 75% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Hail

5%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 88% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 2 years in the area
Smaller shares here
 Tornadoes Ice storms Strong wind Earthquakes Cold waves Lightning Wildfire Winter storms Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 22% of Edinburg’s expected losses. Cold waves do little damage to buildings (0.1%), 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 Edinburg’s grade

Hurricanes are 63% of the building damage FEMA expects in Edinburg, and Edinburg’s rate of hurricanes damage is in the top 6% of U.S. census tracts. Next is river and rain flooding at 29% (lower than 75% of U.S. census tracts).

Where Edinburg sits
Edinburg
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C− #512 of 642 in Texas; higher expected damage per building than 75% of U.S. towns (21,298).

Edinburg’s residents live in 22 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.

What drives the damage to buildings
Hurricanes63%River and rain flooding29%Hail5%Everything else3%

The typical Texas town has higher expected damage than 50% of U.S. towns; within the state, Edinburg has more expected damage per building than 80% of Texas towns.

Among the 400 U.S. cities of 100,000 or more, Edinburg has higher expected damage per building than 68% (#271 of 400). Because it is so big, its total expected yearly loss, $35.3M, is the 323th largest of those 400.

Recent disaster.FEMA’s model looks at expected damage to the buildings standing today. After Severe Storms and Flooding in 2025, FEMA took 1,012 aid registrations from Edinburg addresses (the town has 39,242 homes).
A firm figure. It combines 22 census tracts by where Edinburg’s residents live. FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims and disasters below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Edinburg flood? Yes: 349 flood claims since 1979

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Edinburg, from FEMA’s records: 8.9 per 1,000 homes, more than 72% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1979: 30 claims1980: 121 claims1981: 6 claims1982: 4 claims1983: 3 claims1984: 1 claim1985: 0 claims1986: 0 claims1987: 0 claims1988: 1 claim1989: 0 claims1990: 0 claims1991: 3 claims1992: 0 claims1993: 0 claims1994: 1 claim1995: 0 claims1996: 1 claim1997: 1 claim1998: 0 claims1999: 0 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 5 claims2002: 3 claims2003: 3 claims2004: 3 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 7 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 30 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 2 claims2011: 0 claims2012: 1 claim2013: 1 claim2014: 0 claims2015: 17 claims2016: 9 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 18 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 70 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 1 claim2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 6 claims2026: 1 claim197919802020
19792026
Biggest named events
  • Hurricane Allen120 claims · $639K
  • Hurricane Hanna67 claims · $2.5M
  • Hurricane Dolly29 claims · $433K
349
paid claims since 1979
$5.7M
paid to owners
39
homes flooded more than once
$16K
average claim
Homes that flooded again and again
FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (4)Flooded 2+ times
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Hidalgo County.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
6storm safe rooms built
1building retrofitted against wind
Disasters

13 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Edinburg

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

  1. 2025Severe Storms and Flooding1,012 households applied for aid$4.8M aid approved6 flood claims paid that year
  2. 2024Hurricane Beryl$24K to the City of Edinburg for repairs
  3. 2021Severe Winter Storms692 households applied for aid$362K aid approved$59K to the City of Edinburg for repairs
  4. 2019Severe Storms and Flooding88 households applied for aid$30K aid approved
  5. 2018Severe Storms and Flooding491 households applied for aid$266K aid approved18 flood claims paid that year
  6. 2016Severe Storms and Flooding147 households applied for aid$105K aid approved9 flood claims paid that year
Show all 13
  1. 2015Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding80 households applied for aid$31K aid approved
  2. 2015Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds and Flooding2,093 households applied for aid$1.7M aid approved$634K to the City of Edinburg for repairs
  3. 2010Hurricane Alex747 households applied for aid$1.0M aid approved$98K to the City of Edinburg for repairs2 flood claims paid that year
  4. 2008Hurricane Dolly3,888 households applied for aid$3.7M aid approved$969K to the City of Edinburg for repairs29 flood claims paid for it, $433K
  5. 2007Hurricane Dean$2K to the City of Edinburg for repairs
  6. 2002Severe Storms, Tornadoes and Flooding1,550 households applied for aid$3.0M aid approved3 flood claims paid that year
  7. 1999Hurricane Bret$16K to the City of Edinburg for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in EdinburgHidalgo County only

Hidalgo County has had 26 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, then severe storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Edinburg archive →
Next door

Edinburg and its neighbors

Edinburg is 4th of the 6 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Murillo: hazard risk C−César Chávez: hazard risk C−Doolittle: hazard risk C−McAllen: hazard risk CLopezville: hazard risk C−MurilloCésar ChávezDoolittleMcAllenLopezvilleEdinburg
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
McAllenCmore damage than 74%hurricanes463
MurilloC−more damage than 75%hurricanes11
LopezvilleC−more damage than 75%hurricanes—
EdinburgC−more damage than 75%hurricanes349
César ChávezC−more damage than 79%hurricanes—
DoolittleC−more damage than 82%hurricanes—

Hazard risk = FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade; the map is shaded by fifths of the same scale. Flood claims = paid federal flood insurance claims on record.

Be ready

Get ready for what Edinburg faces

A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.

Hurricane season
  • The season runs June through November and peaks from mid-August to mid-October.
  • Bring in porch furniture and anything the wind can throw.
  • Fill the gas tank and charge phones before the storm arrives.
More from Ready.gov ↗
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 ↗
Hail
  • 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.
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 Edinburg

Is Edinburg at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Edinburg has higher expected damage per building than 75% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk, #512 of 642 in Texas. Most of the expected damage is hurricanes (63%) and river and rain flooding (29%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Does Edinburg flood?

Flood insurance has paid 349 claims in Edinburg since 1979, $5.7M in all, or 8.9 per 1,000 homes, more than 72% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 39 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Hurricane Allen (120).

Is Edinburg 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 Hidalgo County, 3.7% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.

How much is flood insurance in Edinburg?

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

By FEMA money that reached Edinburg, Severe Storms and Flooding (2025): 1,012 households applied for aid, $4.8M approved. By flood claims, Hurricane Allen: 120 paid, $639K.

Is Edinburg at risk from hurricanes?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (63%), and Edinburg’s rate for it is in the top 6% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Edinburg.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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