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City OfficesPhoto: Munsonmunson · Public domain
C−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Spanish Fork · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, Spanish Fork faces more hazard damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns, mostly from earthquakes

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Spanish Fork gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns, #102 of 119 in Utah. Most of that expected damage is earthquakes (54%), then river and rain flooding (43%). Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 1984.

Earthquakes 54%River and rain flooding 43%Wildfire 2%

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

more than 80%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#102 of 119 in Utah
Hazard risk
C−#102 of 119
in Utah · higher than 80% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
Earthquakes
54% of expected building damage
Flood claims
1
paid since 1984 · $111
Flood claims per home
0 per 1,000
fewer than 99% of U.S. towns
By hazard

What Spanish Fork faces

Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.

Earthquakes

54%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 10% of U.S. census tracts

River and rain flooding

43%of expected building damage
About average · higher than 59% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Wildfire Tornadoes Strong wind Hail Winter storms Ice storms Cold waves Heat waves Landslides Lightning Avalanches top 1% Volcanic activity top 5%
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingHurricanesTsunamis
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts earthquakes at 65% of Spanish Fork’s expected losses. Earthquakes do little damage to buildings (54.2%), 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 Spanish Fork’s grade

Earthquakes are 54% of the building damage FEMA expects in Spanish Fork, and Spanish Fork’s rate of earthquakes damage is in the top 10% of U.S. census tracts. Next is river and rain flooding at 43% (higher than 59% of U.S. census tracts).

Where Spanish Fork sits
Spanish Fork
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C− #102 of 119 in Utah; higher expected damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns (21,298).

Spanish Fork’s residents live in 14 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.

What drives the damage to buildings
Earthquakes54%River and rain flooding43%Everything else3%

The typical Utah town has higher expected damage than 56% of U.S. towns; within the state, Spanish Fork has more expected damage per building than 86% of Utah towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $19.0M a year in losses across Spanish Fork: $11.2M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

A firm figure. It combines 14 census tracts by where Spanish Fork’s 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 Spanish Fork flood? Rarely: 1 flood claim since 1984

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Spanish Fork, from FEMA’s records: 0.1 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 99% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1984: 1 claim1985: 0 claims1986: 0 claims1987: 0 claims1988: 0 claims1989: 0 claims1990: 0 claims1991: 0 claims1992: 0 claims1993: 0 claims1994: 0 claims1995: 0 claims1996: 0 claims1997: 0 claims1998: 0 claims1999: 0 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 0 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 0 claims2004: 0 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 0 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims1984
19842026
1
paid claims since 1984
$111
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$111
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

Spanish Fork isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Utah County.
Disasters

The storms Spanish Fork remembers

None of the 4 disasters declared for Utah County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Spanish Fork itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.

  1. 19841 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms, Mudslides, Landslides and Flooding, declared for Utah County
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Spanish ForkUtah County only

Utah County has had 4 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often floods. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.

Also 6 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Utah County, 2001–2026.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Spanish Fork archive →
Next door

Spanish Fork and its neighbors

Spanish Fork is 4th of the 4 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Springville: hazard risk CPalmyra: not gradedMapleton: hazard risk B−Salem: hazard risk CSpringvillePalmyraMapletonSalemSpanish Fork
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
MapletonB−more damage than 54%river and rain flooding1
SpringvilleCmore damage than 66%earthquakes2
SalemCmore damage than 75%earthquakes—
Spanish ForkC−more damage than 80%earthquakes1
Palmyra—301 residents; we grade 1,000+

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.

Be ready

Get ready for what Spanish Fork faces

A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.

Earthquakes
  • Drop, cover and hold on.
  • Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
  • Know how to shut off the gas.
More from Ready.gov ↗
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.
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 Spanish Fork

Is Spanish Fork at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Spanish Fork has higher expected damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk, #102 of 119 in Utah. Most of the expected damage is earthquakes (54%) and river and rain flooding (43%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Does Spanish Fork flood?

Flood insurance has paid 1 claim in Spanish Fork since 1984, $111 in all, or 0.1 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 99% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Is Spanish Fork 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 Utah County, 27% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.3% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Spanish Fork?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Spanish Fork’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.

Is Spanish Fork at risk from earthquakes?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (54%), and Spanish Fork’s rate for it is in the top 10% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Spanish Fork.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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