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Natural hazards · Keaau

Keaau, HI natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Keaau comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is very high for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 2018. 5 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

How exposed is Keaau?

100
Very high
vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Keaau to be higher than in 100% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and earthquakes.

Inland flooding51%Earthquakes33%Volcanic activity12%Everything else5%
By hazard

What Keaau faces

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

Inland flooding

51% of expected damage
Well above average · among the top 1% of U.S. places
Recorded about 6 times a year in the area

Earthquakes

33% of expected damage
Well above average · among the top 1% of U.S. places

Volcanic activity

12% of expected damage
Well above average · among the top 1% of U.S. places

Lower here

Coastal floodingHurricanesTornadoesHailWildfireLandslidesStrong windLightningTsunamis

Not a risk here

Ice stormsWinter weatherCold wavesHeat wavesDroughtAvalanches
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 Keaau flood?

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

1paid claims since 2018
$7Kpaid to owners
0homes flooded more than once
20182026

Biggest named events

  • Hurricane Lane: 1 claim, $7K
of all homes
are insured
No community discount. Keaau isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Hawaii County.
Disasters that hit Keaau

5 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into KeaauDeclared for Hawaii County only
2026

Earthquake

6 households applied for aid $4K aid approved
2026

Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides

105 households applied for aid $472K aid approved
2023

Wildfires and High Winds

1 household applied for aid $700 aid approved
2018

Kilauea Volcanic Eruption and Earthquakes

79 households applied for aid $6K aid approved
2006

Earthquake

38 households applied for aid $18K aid approved
Hawaii County has had 29 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often fires and hurricanes.
Around Keaau

Keaau and the towns around it

Kurtistown: Very high, mostly inland floodingHawaiian Acres: Very high, mostly inland floodingMountain View: Very high, mostly inland floodingOrchidlands Estates: Very high, mostly inland floodingKeaau: Very high, mostly inland flooding KeaauKurtistown
Very lowLowModerateHighVery high
Keaaumostly inland floodingVery high
Kurtistownmostly inland floodingVery high
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. Keaau covers 1 census tract, combined by population.
Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Keaau’s own flood-insurance community (here, the census tracts inside it); household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to Keaau. 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 Keaau total about $13.1M 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.

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/19 · 2025-01-01
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