Dawson is calmer than 72% of U.S. communities
Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Dawson comes from drought, and overall the risk is low for a U.S. community. 1 federal disaster brought FEMA money into town.
What stands out about Dawson’s weather risks
Read from FEMA’s records below. The page puts what stands out first.
How exposed is Dawson?
FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings here to be higher than in 28% of U.S. communities, mostly from drought and inland flooding.
Calmer than 939 of the 1,026 Iowa towns we cover.
Dawson is smaller than a census tract, so it shares the figures of the tract around its center.
Does Dawson flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Dawson. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Dawson isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Dallas County.What Dawson faces
Each hazard’s share of the damage FEMA expects here, and how it compares with the rest of the country.
Drought
Inland flooding
Tornadoes
Cold waves
1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Dawson
Disasters that paid out in Dawson itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Dawson) and its biggest flood years.
- 2008Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding14 households applied for aid$10K aid approved$21K to the City of Dawson for repairs
Dallas County has had 18 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often severe storms and floods.
Old photos of Dawson after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Dawson archive →Get ready for what Dawson actually faces
A short kit for its top hazards, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- On a well? Know how deep it is and watch for sputtering.
- Follow the town’s watering limits.
- Fix drips: they add up.
- 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.
- Pick your spot now: the lowest floor, an inside room, no windows.
- A watch means be ready; a warning means take cover now.
- Keep shoes and a flashlight by the bed.
- 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.
Most disasters here begin in April–June
The month each of Dallas County’s 18 declared disasters began, since 1953.
What these numbers can and can’t tell you
- An average, not a forecast. FEMA’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 there, so a big city isn’t rated riskier just for having more buildings.
- Money that reached town. Flood claims are matched to Dawson’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the City of Dawson.
- It follows property value. FEMA’s model weighs damage to buildings, so a place that recently lost many homes can rate lower than it feels.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Dawson.
Your answer becomes a post in Town Square.
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. Preparedness tips: Ready.gov. An average of past damage, not a forecast.