Aldridge Sawmill · Photo: Renelibrary · CC BY-SA 4.0Storms, floods and disasters in Zavalla
Zavalla isn’t graded for hazard risk: Zavalla has 567 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more.
What Zavalla 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
Tornadoes
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.
Does Zavalla flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Zavalla. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Zavalla isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Angelina County.7 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Zavalla
Disasters that paid out in Zavalla itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Zavalla), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2024Hurricane Beryl3 households applied for aid$12K aid approved
- 2024Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding2 households applied for aid$24K aid approved
- 2021Severe Winter Storms104 households applied for aid$92K aid approved
- 2017Hurricane Harvey2 households applied for aid$2K aid approved
- 2015Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds and Flooding2 households applied for aid$2K aid approved$20K to the City of Zavalla for repairs
- 2008Hurricane Ike188 households applied for aid$86K aid approved
Show all 7
- 2005Hurricane Rita1,000 households applied for aid$990K aid approved$7K to the City of Zavalla for repairs
Angelina County has had 16 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then hurricanes and tropical storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Old photos of Zavalla after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Zavalla archive →Get ready for what Zavalla 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.
- 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.
- 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 Zavalla
Is Zavalla 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 Angelina County, 25% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.0% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Zavalla?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Zavalla’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 Zavalla?
By FEMA money that reached Zavalla, Hurricane Rita (2005): 1,000 households applied for aid, $990K approved, and $7K to the City of Zavalla for repairs.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Zavalla.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Zavalla’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.