TownTapestry
Sign inJoin
MelbourneGood morning
Natural hazards · Melbourne

Melbourne, IA natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Melbourne comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is low for a U.S. community. 5 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

How exposed is Melbourne?

37
Low
vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Melbourne to be higher than in 37% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and drought.

Inland flooding36%Drought33%Tornadoes14%Cold waves6%Strong wind5%Everything else6%
By hazard

What Melbourne 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
Below average · higher than 45% of U.S. places
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Drought

33% of expected damage
Recorded about 7 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

14% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 98% of U.S. places
Recorded about once every 6 years in the area

Cold waves

6% of expected damage
Above average · higher than 67% of U.S. places
Recorded about 8 times a year in the area

Strong wind

5% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 89% of U.S. places
Recorded about 6 times a year in the area

Lower here

HurricanesHailIce stormsWinter weatherHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesLightning

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 Melbourne flood?

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

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

5 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into MelbourneDeclared for Marshall County only
2020

Severe Storms

20 households applied for aid $17K aid approved $26K to the City of Melbourne for repairs
2011

Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding

$11K to the City of Melbourne for repairs
2008

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding

9 households applied for aid $15K aid approved
2007

Severe Winter Storms

$13K to the City of Melbourne for repairs
2004

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding

1 household applied for aid $736 aid approved
Marshall County has had 18 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often floods and severe storms.
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. Melbourne 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 Melbourne’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the City of Melbourne. 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.

The coffee’s on

Where to, neighbor?

You’re in Melbourne, IAView boundary

Nearby

All towns & citiesExplore the map

Local begins with a boundary.

See what belongs to your selected town.

Loading boundary…

Melbourne is your selected town. The feed includes posts assigned to this town, not a distance radius or ZIP code.

Neighborhoods narrow the feed further, while townwide announcements, events, and issues remain visible.

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