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A−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Spencer · FEMA

FEMA puts Spencer’s expected hazard damage per building below that of 81% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Spencer gets an A− for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 81% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (78%), then tornadoes (11%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

River and rain flooding 78%Tornadoes 11%Hail 7%

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 81%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
A−
in Wisconsin · lower than 81% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
78% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
2
of 9 declared for Marathon County

What stands out about Spencer’s natural hazards

From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.

Lower expected damage than 81% of U.S. townsFEMA’s model of yearly storm and flood damage per dollar of building.Made safer with FEMA grants1 storm safe room built with FEMA grants.
By hazard

What Spencer 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

78%of expected building damage
Below average · lower than 62% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 1 years in the area

Tornadoes

11%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 69% of U.S. census tracts

Hail

7%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 84% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Lightning top 0% Strong wind Earthquakes Winter storms 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 39% of Spencer’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 Spencer’s grade

River and rain flooding is 78% of the building damage FEMA expects in Spencer, and Spencer’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 62% of U.S. census tracts. Lightning adds 3%, at a rate in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Spencer sits
Spencer
Least damageMiddleMost damage

A− lower expected damage per building than 81% of U.S. towns (21,298).

All of Spencer’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding78%Tornadoes11%Hail7%Everything else4%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $924K a year in losses across Spencer: $456K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Spencer’s 1,818 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Brighton town (620 residents). FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s, the same for all of them. The flood claims below are the town’s own.
A shared figure. The grade describes the whole tract, not each street in it, and FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Spencer flood? No paid flood claims on record

FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Spencer. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.

of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

Spencer 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.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
1storm safe room built
Disasters

2 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Spencer

Disasters that paid out in Spencer itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Village of Spencer), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.

  1. 2010Severe Storms and Flooding$5K to the Village of Spencer for repairs
  2. 2002Severe Storms and Flooding$5K to the Village of Spencer for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in SpencerMarathon 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 Spencer after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Spencer archive →
Next door

Spencer and its neighbors

Spencer has the lowest expected damage per building of the 1 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Spencer: not gradedSherman: not gradedSpencerShermanSpencer
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
SpencerA−less damage than 81%river and rain flooding0
Spencer—not graded yet
Sherman—933 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 Spencer 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 ↗
Hail
  • Park in a garage or under cover when storms are forecast.
  • Stay away from windows while it falls.
  • Photograph roof and car damage for your insurer.
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 Spencer

Is Spencer at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Spencer has lower expected damage per building than 81% of U.S. towns: A− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (78%) and tornadoes (11%). 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 Spencer 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 Spencer?

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

By FEMA money that reached Spencer, Severe Storms and Flooding (2002): $5K to the Village of Spencer for repairs.

Is Spencer at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (78%), and Spencer’s rate for it is lower than 62% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Spencer.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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