Fort Flagler · Photo: Pseudonymoniker · CC BY-SA 3.0More hazard damage per building is expected in Marrowstone than in 75% of U.S. towns, mostly from earthquakes
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Marrowstone gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 75% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is earthquakes (58%), then river and rain flooding (34%). Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 1997.
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 Marrowstone 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.
What’s behind Marrowstone’s grade
Earthquakes are 58% of the building damage FEMA expects in Marrowstone, and Marrowstone’s rate of earthquakes damage is in the top 9% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 5%, at a rate in the top 3% of U.S. census tracts.
C− higher expected damage per building than 75% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Marrowstone’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $357K a year in losses across Marrowstone: $282K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Marrowstone flood? Rarely: 1 flood claim since 1997
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Marrowstone, from FEMA’s records: 1.6 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 68% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Marrowstone isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Jefferson County.The storms Marrowstone remembers
None of the 25 disasters declared for Jefferson County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Marrowstone itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 19971 flood claims paidThe year of Heavy Rains, Snow Melt, Flooding, Land and Mud Slides, declared for Jefferson County
Jefferson County has had 25 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.
Old photos of Marrowstone after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Marrowstone archive →Get ready for what Marrowstone 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 Marrowstone
Is Marrowstone at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Marrowstone has higher expected damage per building than 75% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is earthquakes (58%) and river and rain flooding (34%). 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.
Does Marrowstone flood?
Flood insurance has paid 1 claim in Marrowstone since 1997, $11K in all, or 1.6 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 68% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Is Marrowstone 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 Jefferson County, 17% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.0% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Marrowstone?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Marrowstone’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Marrowstone at risk from earthquakes?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (58%), and Marrowstone’s rate for it is in the top 9% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Marrowstone.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Marrowstone’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.