Natural hazards · Luther

Luther, IA natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Luther comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is moderate for a U.S. community. 4 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

How exposed is Luther?

45
Moderate
vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Luther to be higher than in 45% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and drought.

Inland flooding36%Drought27%Tornadoes17%Cold waves8%Hail5%Everything else7%
By hazard

What Luther faces

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

Inland flooding

36% of expected damage
Above average · higher than 53% of U.S. places
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Drought

27% of expected damage
Recorded about 9 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

17% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 98% of U.S. places
Recorded about once every 9 years in the area

Cold waves

8% of expected damage
Above average · higher than 74% of U.S. places
Recorded about 8 times a year in the area

Hail

5% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 79% of U.S. places
Recorded about 6 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 Luther flood?

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

of homes in flood zones
are insured
of all homes
are insured
No community discount. Luther isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Boone County.
Disasters that hit Luther

4 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into LutherDeclared for Boone County only
2020

Severe Storms

6 households applied for aid $2K aid approved
2010

Severe Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes

4 households applied for aid $16K aid approved
2008

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding

3 households applied for aid $3K aid approved
2004

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding

1 household applied for aid
Boone County has had 15 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. Luther 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 Luther’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the City of Luther. 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.

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/18 · 2025-01-01