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Moab, Utah downtownPhoto: Quintin Soloviev · CC BY 4.0
B−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Moab · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, Moab faces about as much hazard damage per building as the typical U.S. town, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Moab gets a B− for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 51% of U.S. towns, #47 of 119 in Utah. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (94%). Flood insurance has paid 5 claims here since 2021.

River and rain flooding 94%Earthquakes 3%Wildfire 1%

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 51%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#47 of 119 in Utah
Hazard risk
B−#47 of 119
in Utah · lower than 51% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
94% of expected building damage
Flood claims
5
paid since 2021 · $146K
Flooded more than once
1
properties
Flood insurance
05% off
Community discount (class 9)
By hazard

What Moab 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

94%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 74% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 3 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Earthquakes Wildfire Tornadoes Strong wind Lightning Hail Winter storms Ice storms Landslides Cold waves Heat waves Avalanches top 1%
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingHurricanesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts avalanches at 18% of Moab’s expected losses. Avalanches do little damage to buildings (0.0%), 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 Moab’s grade

River and rain flooding is 94% of the building damage FEMA expects in Moab, and Moab’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 74% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Moab sits
Moab
Least damageMiddleMost damage

B− #47 of 119 in Utah; lower expected damage per building than 51% of U.S. towns (21,298).

Moab’s residents live in 3 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding94%Earthquakes3%Everything else2%

The typical Utah town has higher expected damage than 56% of U.S. towns; within the state, Moab has less expected damage per building than 61% of Utah towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $3.3M a year in losses across Moab: $1.6M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

A small-area figure. Moab covers 3 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 Moab flood? Rarely: 5 flood claims since 2021

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Moab, from FEMA’s records: 1.9 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 63% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
2021: 2 claims2022: 3 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims20212022
20212026
5
paid claims since 2021
$146K
paid to owners
1
homes flooded more than once
$29K
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
Community discount05% off flood insurance

Moab is in FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 9) for its flood-proofing work.

Insurance rates: Grand County.
Disasters

The storms Moab remembers

None of the 1 disasters declared for Grand County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Moab itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.

  1. 20223 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
  2. 20212 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in MoabGrand County only

Grand County has had 1 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.

Were you here?

Old photos of Moab after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Moab archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Moab 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 ↗
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.
  • Moab residents get 05% off flood insurance.
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 Moab

Is Moab at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Moab has lower expected damage per building than 51% of U.S. towns: B− for hazard risk, #47 of 119 in Utah. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (94%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Does Moab flood?

Flood insurance has paid 5 claims in Moab since 2021, $146K in all, or 1.9 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 63% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 1 properties have flooded more than once.

Is Moab 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 Grand County, 33% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 2.2% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Moab?

Moab is in FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 9), which takes 05% off federal flood insurance policies for its flood-proofing work. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.

Is Moab at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (94%), and Moab’s rate for it is higher than 74% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Moab.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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