Photo: Pierce County Library (Life time: Pierce County Library) · Public domainStorms, floods and disasters in Kapowsin
Kapowsin isn’t graded for hazard risk: Kapowsin has 466 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more. Flood insurance has paid 4 claims here since 1986.
What Kapowsin faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
Earthquakes
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.
Does Kapowsin flood? Rarely: 4 flood claims since 1986
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Kapowsin, from FEMA’s records.
Kapowsin isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Pierce County.The storms Kapowsin remembers
None of the 21 disasters declared for Pierce County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Kapowsin itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 19861 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms and Flooding, declared for Pierce County
- 19951 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms, High Wind, and Flooding, declared for Pierce County
- 20091 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Winter Storm, Landslides, Mudslides, and Flooding, declared for Pierce County
Pierce County has had 21 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.
Also 1 FEMA wildfire suppression grant (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Pierce County, 2020–2020.
Old photos of Kapowsin after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Kapowsin archive →Kapowsin and its neighbors
How expected damage per building compares across the town line. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Graham | C+more damage than 65% | earthquakes | — |
| Clear Lake | C−more damage than 82% | river and rain flooding | — |
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 Kapowsin faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- 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 Kapowsin
Does Kapowsin flood?
Flood insurance has paid 4 claims in Kapowsin since 1986, $10K in all.
Is Kapowsin 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 Pierce County, 44% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.7% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Kapowsin?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Kapowsin’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Kapowsin.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Kapowsin’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.