James Charlton Farm · Photo: Skye Marthaler · CC BY-SA 3.0FEMA puts Plum Creek’s expected hazard damage per building below that of 77% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Plum Creek gets an A− for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 77% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (91%). 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 stands out about Plum Creek’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Plum Creek 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
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 Plum Creek’s grade
River and rain flooding is 91% of the building damage FEMA expects in Plum Creek, and Plum Creek’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 53% of U.S. census tracts.
A− lower expected damage per building than 77% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Plum Creek’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $314K a year in losses across Plum Creek: $222K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Plum Creek flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Plum Creek. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Plum Creek isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Montgomery County.The storms Plum Creek remembers
None of the 21 disasters declared for Montgomery County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Plum Creek itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
Montgomery County has had 21 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.
Plum Creek and its neighbors
Plum Creek 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Radford | Aless damage than 90% | river and rain flooding | 4 |
| Plum Creek | A−less damage than 77% | 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 Plum Creek 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.
- 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 Plum Creek
Is Plum Creek at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Plum Creek has lower expected damage per building than 77% of U.S. towns: A− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (91%). 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 Plum Creek 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 Montgomery County, 15% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.5% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Plum Creek?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Plum Creek’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Plum Creek at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (91%), and Plum Creek’s rate for it is higher than 53% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Plum Creek.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Plum Creek’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.