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Baring BridgeBaring Bridge · Photo: Jon Roanhaus · CC BY-SA 4.0
–Not graded
Natural hazards in Baring · FEMA

Storms, floods and disasters in Baring

Baring isn’t graded for hazard risk: Baring has 177 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more.

Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
2
of 30 declared for King County
By hazard

What Baring 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

81%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 4 years in the area

Earthquakes

11%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 86% of U.S. census tracts

Landslides

7%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Wildfire Avalanches top 0% Tornadoes Hail Strong wind Winter storms Ice storms Cold waves Heat waves Lightning Volcanic activity top 1%
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingHurricanesTsunamis
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts avalanches at 68% of Baring’s expected losses. Avalanches 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.
Flood insurance claims

Does Baring flood? No paid flood claims on record

FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Baring. 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

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

Insurance rates: King County.
Disasters

2 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Baring

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

  1. 2025Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides2 households applied for aid$15K aid approved
  2. 2006Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides14 households applied for aid$59K aid approved
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in BaringKing County only

King County has had 30 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 1 FEMA wildfire suppression grant (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in King County, 2022–2022.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Baring archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Baring 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 ↗
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 ↗
Landslides
  • Watch for new cracks, tilting trees or suddenly muddy streams after heavy rain.
  • Stay off steep slopes in a downpour.
  • Leave if you hear rumbling upslope.
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 Baring

Is Baring 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 King County, 44% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.8% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Baring?

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

By FEMA money that reached Baring, Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides (2006): 14 households applied for aid, $59K approved.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Baring.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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