Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Roma

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
Roma Historic DistrictRoma Historic District · Photo: Eugene George, Jr., Photographer · Public domain
BHazard risk
Natural hazards in Roma · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, Roma faces less hazard damage per building than 60% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Roma gets a B for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 60% of U.S. towns, #244 of 642 in Texas. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (88%). Flood insurance has paid 10 claims here since 2007.

River and rain flooding 88%Hurricanes 7%Hail 2%

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

less than 60%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#244 of 642 in Texas
Hazard risk
B#244 of 642
in Texas · lower than 60% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
88% of expected building damage
Flood claims
10
paid since 2007 · $271K
Flooded more than once
2
properties
Disasters paid out here
6
of 17 declared for Starr County
By hazard

What Roma 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

88%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 64% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Hurricanes

7%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 73% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 17 years in the area
Smaller shares here
 Hail Wildfire Tornadoes Earthquakes Lightning Strong wind Winter storms Ice storms Cold waves 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 68% of Roma’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 Roma’s grade

River and rain flooding is 88% of the building damage FEMA expects in Roma, and Roma’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 64% of U.S. census tracts. Next is hurricanes at 7% (higher than 73% of U.S. census tracts).

Where Roma sits
Roma
Least damageMiddleMost damage

B #244 of 642 in Texas; lower expected damage per building than 60% of U.S. towns (21,298).

Roma’s residents live in 5 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding88%Hurricanes7%Everything else5%

The typical Texas town has higher expected damage than 50% of U.S. towns; within the state, Roma has less expected damage per building than 62% of Texas towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $4.8M a year in losses across Roma: $1.3M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

A small-area figure. Roma covers 5 census tracts, combined by where 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 Roma flood? Sometimes: 10 flood claims since 2007

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Roma, from FEMA’s records: 2.4 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 57% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
2007: 1 claim2008: 3 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 1 claim2011: 1 claim2012: 0 claims2013: 1 claim2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 3 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims200720082018
20072026
Biggest named events
  • The Thunderstorms1 claim · $15K
10
paid claims since 2007
$271K
paid to owners
2
homes flooded more than once
$27K
average claim
Homes that flooded again and again
FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (0)Flooded 2+ times
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Starr County.
Disasters

6 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Roma

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

  1. 2025Severe Storms and Flooding155 households applied for aid$595K aid approved
  2. 2018Severe Storms and Flooding1 households applied for aid$4K aid approved3 flood claims paid that year
  3. 2015Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds and Flooding$7K to the City of Roma for repairs
  4. 2010Hurricane Alex61 households applied for aid$446K aid approved$43K to the City of Roma for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
  5. 2008Hurricane Dolly$29K to the City of Roma for repairs3 flood claims paid that year
  6. 2007Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding271 households applied for aid$297K aid approved$113K to the City of Roma for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in RomaStarr County only

Starr County has had 17 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 Roma after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Roma archive →
Next door

Roma and its neighbors

Roma has the lowest expected damage per building of the 2 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Ramos: not gradedMoraida: not gradedEscobares: hazard risk B−Pena: not gradedEvergreen: not gradedRamosMoraidaEscobaresPenaEvergreenRoma
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
RomaBless damage than 60%river and rain flooding10
EscobaresB−more damage than 54%river and rain flooding—
Ramos—115 residents; we grade 1,000+
Moraida—0 residents; we grade 1,000+
Pena—0 residents; we grade 1,000+
Evergreen—116 residents; we grade 1,000+

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 Roma faces

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

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 ↗
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 ↗
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 Roma

Is Roma at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Roma has lower expected damage per building than 60% of U.S. towns: B for hazard risk, #244 of 642 in Texas. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (88%) and hurricanes (7%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Does Roma flood?

Flood insurance has paid 10 claims in Roma since 2007, $271K in all, or 2.4 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 57% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 2 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Thunderstorms (1).

Is Roma 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 Starr County, 4% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.9% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Roma?

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

By FEMA money that reached Roma, Severe Storms and Flooding (2025): 155 households applied for aid, $595K approved. By flood claims, Thunderstorms: 1 paid, $15K.

Is Roma at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (88%), and Roma’s rate for it is higher than 64% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Roma.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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