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Bellevue Water TowerPhoto: Rauglothgor · CC BY-SA 4.0
B−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Bellevue · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, Bellevue faces about as much hazard damage per building as the typical U.S. town, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bellevue gets a B− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 53% of U.S. towns, #311 of 362 in Wisconsin. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (90%). Flood insurance has paid 4 claims here since 2019.

River and rain flooding 90%Tornadoes 6%Hail 3%

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 53%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#311 of 362 in Wisconsin
Hazard risk
B−#311 of 362
in Wisconsin · higher than 53% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
90% of expected building damage
Flood claims
4
paid since 2019 · $163K
Flood claims per home
1 per 1,000
fewer than 88% of U.S. towns
By hazard

What Bellevue 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

90%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 74% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area

Tornadoes

6%of expected building damage
About average · higher than 60% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Hail Coastal flooding Strong wind Earthquakes Lightning Hurricanes Wildfire Winter storms Ice storms Cold waves Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
AvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 15% of Bellevue’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 Bellevue’s grade

River and rain flooding is 90% of the building damage FEMA expects in Bellevue, and Bellevue’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 74% of U.S. census tracts. Next is tornadoes at 6% (higher than 60% of U.S. census tracts).

Where Bellevue sits
Bellevue
Least damageMiddleMost damage

B− #311 of 362 in Wisconsin; higher expected damage per building than 53% of U.S. towns (21,298).

Bellevue’s residents live in 2 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding90%Tornadoes6%Hail3%Everything else1%

The typical Wisconsin town has lower expected damage than 79% of U.S. towns; within the state, Bellevue has more expected damage per building than 86% of Wisconsin towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $10.2M a year in losses across Bellevue: $8.0M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

A small-area figure. Bellevue covers 2 census tracts, combined by where residents live. FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims and disasters below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Bellevue flood? Rarely: 4 flood claims since 2019

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Bellevue, from FEMA’s records: 0.5 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 88% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
2019: 4 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims2019
20192026
Biggest named events
  • The March 2019 Midwest Flooding4 claims · $163K
4
paid claims since 2019
$163K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$41K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Brown County.
Disasters

The storms Bellevue remembers

None of the 6 disasters declared for Brown County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Bellevue itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.

  1. 20194 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in BellevueBrown County only

Brown 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.

Were you here?

Old photos of Bellevue after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Bellevue archive →
Next door

Bellevue and its neighbors

Bellevue is 3rd of the 4 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Allouez: hazard risk C−Green Bay: hazard risk A−Ledgeview: hazard risk B−AllouezGreen BayLedgeviewBellevue
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
Green BayA−less damage than 79%river and rain flooding162
LedgeviewB−more damage than 51%river and rain flooding—
BellevueB−more damage than 53%river and rain flooding4
AllouezC−more damage than 79%river and rain flooding5

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.

Be ready

Get ready for what Bellevue 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 ↗
Tornado warnings
  • Pick your spot now: the lowest floor, an inside room, no windows.
  • A watch means be ready; a warning means take cover now.
  • Keep shoes and a flashlight by the bed.
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 Bellevue

Is Bellevue at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bellevue has higher expected damage per building than 53% of U.S. towns: B− for hazard risk, #311 of 362 in Wisconsin. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (90%) and tornadoes (6%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Does Bellevue flood?

Flood insurance has paid 4 claims in Bellevue since 2019, $163K in all, or 0.5 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 88% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from March 2019 Midwest Flooding (4).

Is Bellevue 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 Brown County, 10% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.6% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Bellevue?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Bellevue’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 Bellevue?

By flood claims, March 2019 Midwest Flooding: 4 paid, $163K.

Is Bellevue at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (90%), and Bellevue’s rate for it is higher than 74% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Bellevue.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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