Natural hazards · Colwell

Colwell, IA natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Colwell comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is 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 Colwell?

High

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Colwell to be higher than in 64% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and drought.

Inland flooding43%Drought20%Tornadoes15%Hail9%Cold waves8%Everything else5%

By hazard

What Colwell faces

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

Inland flooding

43% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 76% of U.S. places

Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Drought

20% of expected damage

Recorded about 22 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

15% of expected damage

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

Recorded about once every 6 years in the area

Hail

9% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 85% of U.S. places

Recorded about 5 times a year in the area

Cold waves

8% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 70% of U.S. places

Recorded about 10 times a year in the area

Lower here

HurricanesIce stormsWinter weatherHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesStrong windLightning

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic 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 Colwell flood?

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

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Floyd County.

Disasters that hit Colwell

1 federal disaster brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into ColwellDeclared for Floyd County only

2008

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding

2 households applied for aid $5K aid approved

Floyd County has had 17 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often severe storms and floods.

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. Colwell 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 Colwell’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the City of Colwell. 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.