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C−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Basin City · FEMA

FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Basin City than in 76% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Basin City gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 76% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (85%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

River and rain flooding 85%Wildfire 8%Earthquakes 6%

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 76%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
C−
in Washington · higher than 76% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
85% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
0
of 8 declared for Franklin County
By hazard

What Basin City 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

85%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 85% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 5 years in the area

Wildfire

8%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts

Earthquakes

6%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 76% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Strong wind Tornadoes Hail Winter storms Ice storms Cold waves Heat waves Landslides Lightning Volcanic activity top 4%
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingHurricanesAvalanchesTsunamis
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 10% of Basin City’s expected losses. Cold waves 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 Basin City’s grade

River and rain flooding is 85% of the building damage FEMA expects in Basin City, and Basin City’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 85% of U.S. census tracts. Wildfire adds 8%, at a rate in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Basin City sits
Basin City
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C− higher expected damage per building than 76% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding85%Wildfire8%Earthquakes6%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $420K a year in losses across Basin City: $303K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Basin City’s 1,063 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 Basin City flood? No paid flood claims on record

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

of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Franklin County.
Disasters

The storms Basin City remembers

None of the 8 disasters declared for Franklin County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Basin City itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.

Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Basin CityFranklin County only

Franklin County has had 8 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then floods. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.

Be ready

Get ready for what Basin City 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 ↗
Wildfire
  • Clear dead leaves and brush within 5 feet of the house.
  • Sign up for local alerts and know two ways out.
  • Keep N95 masks for smoky days.
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 ↗
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 Basin City

Is Basin City at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Basin City has higher expected damage per building than 76% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (85%) and wildfire (8%). 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 Basin City 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 Franklin County, 0.0% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.

How much is flood insurance in Basin City?

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

Is Basin City at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (85%), and Basin City’s rate for it is higher than 85% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Basin City.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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