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Natural hazards · Marion

Marion, IA natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Marion comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is moderate for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 25 claims here since 1982. 6 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

How exposed is Marion?

45
Moderate
vs. U.S. communities

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

Inland flooding48%Tornadoes19%Strong wind11%Cold waves8%Hail7%Everything else6%
By hazard

What Marion faces

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

Inland flooding

48% of expected damage
Above average · higher than 54% of U.S. places
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

19% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 96% of U.S. places

Strong wind

11% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 84% of U.S. places
Recorded about 6 times a year in the area

Cold waves

8% of expected damage
Above average · higher than 59% of U.S. places
Recorded about 8 times a year in the area

Hail

7% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 91% of U.S. places
Recorded about 5 times a year in the area

Lower here

HurricanesIce stormsWinter weatherHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesLightningDrought

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 Marion flood?

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

25paid claims since 1982
$311Kpaid to owners
2homes flooded more than once
19822026

Biggest named events

  • Midwest Flooding: 4 claims, $108K

Homes that flooded again and again

■ FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (0) ■ flooded 2+ times

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

What’s been done with FEMA grants

15flood-prone properties bought out and cleared
1storm safe rooms built
Disasters that hit Marion

6 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into MarionDeclared for Linn County only
2020

Severe Storms

1,394 households applied for aid $639K aid approved $30.1M to the City of Marion for repairs
2014

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

$198K to the City of Marion for repairs
2008

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding

122 households applied for aid $81K aid approved $302K to the City of Marion for repairs
2007

Severe Winter Storms

$236K to the City of Marion for repairs
2004

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding

25 households applied for aid $36K aid approved
2002

Severe Storms and Flooding

$336K to the City of Marion for repairs
Linn County has had 18 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often floods and severe storms.
Around Marion

Marion and the towns around it

Cedar Rapids: Low, mostly inland floodingHiawatha: Low, mostly inland floodingRobins: Low, mostly inland floodingFairfax: Moderate, mostly inland floodingBertram: Moderate, mostly inland floodingMarion: Moderate, mostly inland flooding MarionCedar Rapids
Very lowLowModerateHighVery high
Marionmostly inland floodingModerate
Cedar Rapidsmostly inland floodingLow
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. Marion covers 5 census tracts, combined by population.
Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Marion’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the City of Marion. 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 Marion total about $7.8M 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/18 · 2025-01-01
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