Photo: Taken by-Roger Propst, Uploaded by-Dakota Laughlin · CC BY-SA 4.0Storms, floods and disasters in Grantsville
Grantsville isn’t graded for hazard risk: Grantsville has 401 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more. Flood insurance has paid 105 claims here since 1978.
What Grantsville 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
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 Grantsville flood? Yes: 105 flood claims since 1978
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Grantsville, from FEMA’s records.
Grantsville isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Calhoun County.5 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Grantsville
Disasters that paid out in Grantsville itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Grantsville), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2009Severe Storms, Flooding, Mudslides, and Landslides1 households applied for aid$20K aid approved2 flood claims paid that year
- 2004Severe Storms, Flooding, and Landslides2 households applied for aid$7K aid approved
- 2003Severe Storms, Flooding, and Landslides14 households applied for aid$31K aid approved$2K to the Town of Grantsville for repairs
- 2003Severe Winter Storm, Record/near Record Snow, Heavy Rains, Flooding and Landslides31 households applied for aid$22K aid approved$5K to the Town of Grantsville for repairs
- 2000Flooding, Severe Storms, and Landslides$2K to the Town of Grantsville for repairs11 flood claims paid that year
Calhoun County has had 20 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.
Old photos of Grantsville after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Grantsville archive →Get ready for what Grantsville 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.
- 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 Grantsville
Does Grantsville flood?
Flood insurance has paid 105 claims in Grantsville since 1978, $1.3M in all. 13 properties have flooded more than once.
Is Grantsville 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 Calhoun County, 7% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.0% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Grantsville?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Grantsville’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 Grantsville?
By FEMA money that reached Grantsville, Severe Storms, Flooding, and Landslides (2003): 14 households applied for aid, $31K approved, and $2K to the Town of Grantsville for repairs.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Grantsville.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Grantsville’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.