Photo: Jplatts at English Wikipedia · Public domainOn FEMA’s figures, Yarrow Point faces more hazard damage per building than 70% of U.S. towns, mostly from earthquakes
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Yarrow Point gets a C for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 70% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is earthquakes (60%), then river and rain flooding (39%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.
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 Yarrow Point 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 Yarrow Point’s grade
Earthquakes are 60% of the building damage FEMA expects in Yarrow Point, and Yarrow Point’s rate of earthquakes damage is in the top 10% of U.S. census tracts. Next is river and rain flooding at 39% (lower than 67% of U.S. census tracts).
C higher expected damage per building than 70% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Yarrow Point’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.1M a year in losses across Yarrow Point: $808K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Yarrow Point flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Yarrow Point. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Yarrow Point 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.1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Yarrow Point
Disasters that paid out in Yarrow Point itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Yarrow Point), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2006Severe Winter Storm, Landslides, and Mudslides$6K to the Town of Yarrow Point for repairs
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.
Old photos of Yarrow Point after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Yarrow Point archive →Yarrow Point and its neighbors
Yarrow Point is 2nd of the 3 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clyde Hill | Cmore damage than 70% | earthquakes | — |
| Yarrow Point | Cmore damage than 70% | earthquakes | 0 |
| Kirkland | C−more damage than 79% | earthquakes | 6 |
| Hunts Point | — | 289 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
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 Yarrow Point 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 Yarrow Point
Is Yarrow Point at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Yarrow Point has higher expected damage per building than 70% of U.S. towns: C for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is earthquakes (60%) and river and rain flooding (39%). 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 Yarrow Point 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 Yarrow Point?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Yarrow Point’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 Yarrow Point?
By FEMA money that reached Yarrow Point, Severe Winter Storm, Landslides, and Mudslides (2006): $6K to the Town of Yarrow Point for repairs.
Is Yarrow Point at risk from earthquakes?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (60%), and Yarrow Point’s rate for it is in the top 10% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Yarrow Point.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Yarrow Point’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.