On FEMA’s figures, Winnie faces more hazard damage per building than 70% of U.S. towns, led by river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Winnie gets a C for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 70% of U.S. towns, #470 of 642 in Texas. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (44%), then hurricanes (31%). 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 Winnie 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
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 Winnie’s grade
River and rain flooding is 44% of the building damage FEMA expects in Winnie, and Winnie’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 58% of U.S. census tracts. Wildfire adds 10%, at a rate in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts.
C #470 of 642 in Texas; higher expected damage per building than 70% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Winnie’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
The typical Texas town has higher expected damage than 50% of U.S. towns; within the state, Winnie has more expected damage per building than 73% of Texas towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.8M a year in losses across Winnie: $1.1M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Winnie flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Winnie. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Winnie isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Chambers County.6 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Winnie
Disasters that paid out in Winnie itself (aid to households or repair grants to Winnie), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2024Hurricane Beryl425 households applied for aid$803K aid approved
- 2021Severe Winter Storms90 households applied for aid$42K aid approved
- 2019Tropical Storm Imelda910 households applied for aid$4.5M aid approved
- 2017Hurricane Harvey1,300 households applied for aid$3.9M aid approved
- 2008Hurricane Ike1,790 households applied for aid$3.9M aid approved
- 2005Hurricane Rita2,765 households applied for aid$5.0M aid approved
Chambers County has had 16 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.
Old photos of Winnie after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Winnie archive →Winnie and its neighbors
Winnie is 2nd of the 2 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stowell | Cmore damage than 70% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Winnie | Cmore damage than 70% | river and rain flooding | 0 |
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.
Get ready for what Winnie 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.
- 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 Winnie
Is Winnie at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Winnie has higher expected damage per building than 70% of U.S. towns: C for hazard risk, #470 of 642 in Texas. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (44%) and hurricanes (31%). 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 Winnie 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 Chambers County, 43% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 22.7% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Winnie?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Winnie’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 Winnie?
By FEMA money that reached Winnie, Hurricane Rita (2005): 2,765 households applied for aid, $5.0M approved.
Is Winnie at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (44%), and Winnie’s rate for it is lower than 58% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Winnie.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Winnie’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.