Natural hazards · Valparaiso

Valparaiso, FL natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Valparaiso comes from hurricanes, and overall the risk is very high for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 67 claims here since 1995. 5 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Valparaiso?

Very high

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Valparaiso to be higher than in 85% of U.S. communities, mostly from hurricanes.

Hurricanes72%Inland flooding15%Tornadoes6%Everything else8%

By hazard

What Valparaiso faces

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

Hurricanes

72% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 96% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 4 years in the area

Inland flooding

15% of expected damage

Well below average · higher than 12% of U.S. places

Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

6% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 65% of U.S. places

Lower here

Coastal floodingHailIce stormsWinter weatherCold wavesHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesStrong windLightning

Not a risk here

DroughtAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity

Flood risk changes street by street. Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.

Flood insurance claims

Does Valparaiso flood?

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Valparaiso, from FEMA’s records.

67paid claims since 1995

$1.3Mpaid to owners

13homes flooded more than once

19952026

Biggest named events

Hurricane Opal: 43 claims, $1.0M
Hurricane Ivan: 19 claims, $222K
Mid-spring storms: 2 claims, $16K

Homes that flooded again and again

■ FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (1) ■ flooded 2+ times

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

No community discount. Valparaiso isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Okaloosa County.

Disasters that hit Valparaiso

5 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into ValparaisoDeclared for Okaloosa County only

2020

Hurricane Sally

7 households applied for aid

2017

Hurricane Irma

2 households applied for aid $500 aid approved

2014

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding

5 households applied for aid $3K aid approved $33K to the City of Valparaiso for repairs

2005

Hurricane Dennis

90 households applied for aid $34K aid approved $32K to the City of Valparaiso for repairs

2004

Hurricane Ivan

262 households applied for aid $150K aid approved $392K to the City of Valparaiso for repairs

Okaloosa County has had 33 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often hurricanes and severe storms.

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. Valparaiso covers 1 census tract, combined by population.

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

FEMA’s expected losses across Valparaiso total about $5.6M a year, counting buildings, people and crops.

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.