Natural hazards · Cantwell

Cantwell, AK natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Cantwell comes from avalanches, and overall the risk is very high for a U.S. community. 1 federal disaster brought FEMA money into town.

FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025 · OpenFEMA claims, aid & declarations

Expected damage

How exposed is Cantwell?

Very high

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Cantwell to be higher than in 88% of U.S. communities, mostly from avalanches and cold waves.

Avalanches55%Cold waves18%Earthquakes16%Wildfire7%Everything else4%

By hazard

What Cantwell faces

Each hazard’s share of the damage FEMA expects here, and how that compares with the rest of the country.

Avalanches

55% of expected damage

Well above average · among the top 1% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 2 years in the area

Cold waves

18% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 98% of U.S. places

Recorded about 6 times a year in the area

Earthquakes

16% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 95% of U.S. places

Wildfire

7% of expected damage

Well above average · among the top 1% of U.S. places

Lower here

Inland floodingTornadoesHailIce stormsWinter weatherLandslidesStrong windLightningVolcanic activity

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingHurricanesHeat wavesDroughtTsunamis

Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.

Flood insurance claims

Does Cantwell flood?

FEMA's records show no paid flood insurance claims in Cantwell.

Disasters that hit Cantwell

1 federal disaster brought FEMA money here

Disasters the President declared that paid out in Cantwell itself: aid to households, or repair grants to Cantwell.

Brought FEMA money into CantwellDeclared for Denali Borough only

2002

Earthquake

2 households applied for aid

Denali Borough has had 8 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often severe storms and fires.

About these numbers

How to read this page

An average, not a forecastFEMA’s National Risk Index estimates the damage 18 kinds of natural hazards cause in a typical year, from decades of records and models. A quiet decade can follow a bad year.

Compared by rate“Higher than N%” compares yearly damage as a share of what’s here, so a big city isn’t rated riskier just for having more buildings. Cantwell is smaller than a census tract, so it shares the figures of the tract around its center.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Cantwell’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to Cantwell. FEMA’s model follows property values, so a place that recently lost many homes can rate lower than it feels.

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025); 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. Census tracts: U.S. Census Bureau.