Photo: Williamborg (Bill) 01:05, 27 April 2008 (UTC) · Public domainStorms, floods and disasters in Washtucna
Washtucna isn’t graded for hazard risk: Washtucna has 292 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more. Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 2008.
What Washtucna 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
Wildfire
Earthquakes
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 Washtucna flood? Rarely: 1 flood claim since 2008
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Washtucna, from FEMA’s records.
Washtucna isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Adams County.The storms Washtucna remembers
None of the 6 disasters declared for Adams County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Washtucna itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 20081 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Winter Storm and Record and Near Record Snow, declared for Adams County
Adams County has had 6 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 Adams County, 2022–2022.
Old photos of Washtucna after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Washtucna archive →Get ready for what Washtucna faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- 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.
- 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.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- 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 Washtucna
Does Washtucna flood?
Flood insurance has paid 1 claim in Washtucna since 2008, $2K in all.
Is Washtucna 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 Adams County, 5% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.1% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Washtucna?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Washtucna’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 Washtucna.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Washtucna’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.