Sunray’s building-damage rate from hail is in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Sunray gets a B for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 59% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is hail (34%), then river and rain flooding (24%). 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 Sunray’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Sunray 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
Wildfire
Tornadoes
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 Sunray’s grade
Hail is 34% of the building damage FEMA expects in Sunray, and Sunray’s rate of hail damage is in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts. Wildfire adds 17%, at a rate in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts.
B lower expected damage per building than 59% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Sunray’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $3.6M a year in losses across Sunray: $394K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Sunray flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Sunray. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Sunray isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Moore County.1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Sunray
Disasters that paid out in Sunray itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Sunray), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2007Severe Storms and Tornadoes1 households applied for aid$2K aid approved
Moore County has had 9 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.
Also 1 FEMA wildfire suppression grant (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Moore County, 2024–2024.
Old photos of Sunray after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Sunray archive →Get ready for what Sunray 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.
- Clear dead leaves and brush within 5 feet of the house.
- Sign up for local alerts and know two ways out.
- Keep N95 masks for smoky days.
- 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.
- 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 Sunray
Is Sunray at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Sunray has lower expected damage per building than 59% of U.S. towns: B for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is hail (34%) and river and rain flooding (24%). 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 Sunray 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 Moore County, 0.2% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.
How much is flood insurance in Sunray?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Sunray’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 Sunray?
By FEMA money that reached Sunray, Severe Storms and Tornadoes (2007): 1 households applied for aid, $2K approved.
Is Sunray at risk from hail?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (34%), and Sunray’s rate for it is in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Sunray.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Sunray’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.