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B+Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Riner · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, Riner faces less hazard damage per building than 70% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Riner gets a B+ for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 70% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (92%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

River and rain flooding 92%Earthquakes 3%Tornadoes 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 70%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
B+
in Virginia · lower than 70% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
92% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
3
of 21 declared for Montgomery County

What stands out about Riner’s natural hazards

From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.

Lower expected damage than 70% of U.S. townsFEMA’s model of yearly storm and flood damage per dollar of building.Landslides: the top 2% of U.S. tractsFEMA’s building-damage rate for landslides here ranks in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts; it is 0.6% of the damage it expects.
By hazard

What Riner 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

92%of expected building damage
About average · higher than 59% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Earthquakes Tornadoes Strong wind Hurricanes Landslides top 2% Hail Wildfire Lightning Winter storms Ice storms Cold waves
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingHeat wavesAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 12% of Riner’s expected losses. Cold waves do little damage to buildings (0.1%), 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 Riner’s grade

River and rain flooding is 92% of the building damage FEMA expects in Riner, and Riner’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 59% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Riner sits
Riner
Least damageMiddleMost damage

B+ lower expected damage per building than 70% of U.S. towns (21,298).

All of Riner’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding92%Everything else8%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $199K a year in losses across Riner: $138K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Riner’s 949 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract. FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s. The flood claims below are the town’s own.
A shared figure. The grade describes the whole tract, not each street in it, and FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Riner flood? No paid flood claims on record

FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Riner. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.

of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

Riner 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.
Disasters

3 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Riner

Disasters that paid out in Riner itself (aid to households or repair grants to Riner), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.

  1. 2024Tropical Storm Helene6 households applied for aid$1K aid approved
  2. 2004Severe Storms and Flooding From the Remanants of Hurricane Jeanne12 households applied for aid$41K aid approved
  3. 2003Severe Winter Storm, Record/near Record Snowfall, Heavy Rain,floodind, and Mudslide6 households applied for aid$12K aid approved
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in RinerMontgomery County only

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.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Riner archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Riner 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.
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 Riner

Is Riner at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Riner has lower expected damage per building than 70% of U.S. towns: B+ for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (92%). 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 Riner 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 Riner?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Riner’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 Riner?

By FEMA money that reached Riner, Severe Storms and Flooding From the Remanants of Hurricane Jeanne (2004): 12 households applied for aid, $41K approved.

Is Riner at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (92%), and Riner’s rate for it is higher than 59% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Riner.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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