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MarathonCityWisconsinDowntownPhoto: self · CC BY-SA 2.5
BHazard risk
Natural hazards in Marathon City · FEMA

FEMA expects about as much hazard damage per building in Marathon City as in the typical U.S. town, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Marathon City gets a B for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 59% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (85%). Flood insurance has paid 3 claims here since 1980.

River and rain flooding 85%Tornadoes 8%Hail 5%

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

less than 59%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
B
in Wisconsin · lower than 59% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
85% of expected building damage
Flood claims
3
paid since 1980 · $16K
Flooded more than once
1
properties
Flood claims per home
5 per 1,000
more than 61% of U.S. towns
By hazard

What Marathon City 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

85%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 62% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 1 years in the area

Tornadoes

8%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 66% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Hail Lightning top 0% Strong wind Winter storms Earthquakes Wildfire Ice storms Cold waves Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingHurricanesAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 30% of Marathon City’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 Marathon City’s grade

River and rain flooding is 85% of the building damage FEMA expects in Marathon City, and Marathon City’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 62% of U.S. census tracts. Lightning adds 2%, at a rate in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Marathon City sits
Marathon City
Least damageMiddleMost damage

B lower expected damage per building than 59% of U.S. towns (21,298).

Marathon City’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 flooding85%Tornadoes8%Hail5%Everything else3%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.1M a year in losses across Marathon City: $673K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

A small-area figure. Marathon City 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 Marathon City flood? Rarely: 3 flood claims since 1980

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Marathon City, from FEMA’s records: 5.1 per 1,000 homes, more than 61% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1980: 1 claim1981: 0 claims1982: 0 claims1983: 0 claims1984: 0 claims1985: 0 claims1986: 0 claims1987: 0 claims1988: 0 claims1989: 0 claims1990: 0 claims1991: 0 claims1992: 0 claims1993: 1 claim1994: 0 claims1995: 0 claims1996: 0 claims1997: 0 claims1998: 0 claims1999: 0 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 1 claim2002: 0 claims2003: 0 claims2004: 0 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 0 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims198019932001
19802026
Biggest named events
  • The Severe flooding1 claim · $13K
3
paid claims since 1980
$16K
paid to owners
1
homes flooded more than once
$5K
average claim
Homes that flooded again and again
FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (0)Flooded 2+ times
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Marathon County.
Disasters

The storms Marathon City remembers

None of the 9 disasters declared for Marathon County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Marathon City itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.

  1. 19801 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
  2. 19931 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms, Tornadoes and Flooding, declared for Marathon County
  3. 20011 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Marathon CityMarathon County only

Marathon County has had 9 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 Marathon City after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Marathon City archive →
Next door

Marathon City and its neighbors

Marathon City has the lowest expected damage per building of the 2 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Marathon: not gradedCassel: not gradedRib Falls: not gradedStettin: hazard risk B−MarathonCasselRib FallsStettinMarathon City
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
Marathon CityBless damage than 59%river and rain flooding3
StettinB−less damage than 55%river and rain flooding2
Marathon—not graded yet
Cassel—not graded yet
Rib Falls—959 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.

Be ready

Get ready for what Marathon City 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 Marathon City

Is Marathon City at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Marathon City has lower expected damage per building than 59% of U.S. towns: B for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (85%) and tornadoes (8%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Does Marathon City flood?

Flood insurance has paid 3 claims in Marathon City since 1980, $16K in all, or 5.1 per 1,000 homes, more than 61% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 1 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Severe flooding (1).

Is Marathon City 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 Marathon County, 19% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.4% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Marathon City?

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

By flood claims, Severe flooding: 1 paid, $13K.

Is Marathon City at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (85%), and Marathon City’s rate for it is higher than 62% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Marathon City.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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