Photo: Djmaschek · CC BY-SA 3.0On FEMA’s figures, Fairchilds faces more hazard damage per building than 69% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Fairchilds gets a C for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 69% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (67%), then hurricanes (28%). Flood insurance has paid 17 claims here since 2015.
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 Fairchilds 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
Hurricanes
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 Fairchilds’ grade
River and rain flooding is 67% of the building damage FEMA expects in Fairchilds, and Fairchilds’ rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 69% of U.S. census tracts. Next is hurricanes at 28% (higher than 88% of U.S. census tracts).
C higher expected damage per building than 69% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Fairchilds’ residents live in 2 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $423K a year in losses across Fairchilds: $263K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Fairchilds flood? Sometimes: 17 flood claims since 2015
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Fairchilds, from FEMA’s records: 45.5 per 1,000 homes, more than 92% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Hurricane Harvey7 claims · $170K
- The Early summer storms2 claims · $29K
Fairchilds isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Fort Bend County.The storms Fairchilds remembers
None of the 21 disasters declared for Fort Bend County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Fairchilds itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 20198 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
- 20177 flood claims paidThe year of Hurricane Harvey, declared for Fort Bend County
- 20152 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds and Flooding, declared for Fort Bend County
Fort Bend County has had 21 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, then floods. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Also 1 FEMA wildfire suppression grant (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Fort Bend County, 2006–2006.
Old photos of Fairchilds after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Fairchilds archive →Get ready for what Fairchilds 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.
- 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.
- 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 Fairchilds
Is Fairchilds at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Fairchilds has higher expected damage per building than 69% of U.S. towns: C for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (67%) and hurricanes (28%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Fairchilds flood?
Flood insurance has paid 17 claims in Fairchilds since 2015, $537K in all, or 45.5 per 1,000 homes, more than 92% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 4 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Hurricane Harvey (7).
Is Fairchilds 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 Fort Bend County, 42% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 15.4% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Fairchilds?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Fairchilds’ 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 Fairchilds?
By flood claims, Hurricane Harvey: 7 paid, $170K.
Is Fairchilds at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (67%), and Fairchilds’ rate for it is higher than 69% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Fairchilds.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Fairchilds’ 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.