Photo: Public domain · Public domainLess hazard damage per building is expected in Delta than in 73% of U.S. towns, led by river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Delta gets a B+ for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 73% of U.S. towns, #12 of 119 in Utah. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (40%), then earthquakes (38%). Flood insurance has paid 12 claims here since 1983.
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 Delta 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
Earthquakes
Wildfire
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 Delta’s grade
River and rain flooding is 40% of the building damage FEMA expects in Delta, and Delta’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 92% of U.S. census tracts. Wildfire adds 20%, at a rate in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts.
B+ #12 of 119 in Utah; lower expected damage per building than 73% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Delta’s residents live in 2 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Utah town has higher expected damage than 56% of U.S. towns; within the state, Delta has less expected damage per building than 91% of Utah towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.5M a year in losses across Delta: $1.0M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Delta flood? Sometimes: 12 flood claims since 1983
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Delta, from FEMA’s records: 8.9 per 1,000 homes, more than 72% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Delta isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Millard County.The storms Delta remembers
None of the 4 disasters declared for Millard County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Delta itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 198311 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms, Landslides and Flooding, declared for Millard County
- 20071 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
Millard County has had 4 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often floods, then severe storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Also 4 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Millard County, 2007–2026.
Old photos of Delta after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Delta archive →Get ready for what Delta 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.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- 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.
- 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 Delta
Is Delta at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Delta has lower expected damage per building than 73% of U.S. towns: B+ for hazard risk, #12 of 119 in Utah. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (40%) and earthquakes (38%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Delta flood?
Flood insurance has paid 12 claims in Delta since 1983, $205K in all, or 8.9 per 1,000 homes, more than 72% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Is Delta 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 Millard County, 0.1% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.
How much is flood insurance in Delta?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Delta’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Delta at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (40%), and Delta’s rate for it is lower than 92% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Delta.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Delta’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.