Natural hazards · Monmouth

Monmouth, IA natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Monmouth comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is high for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 3 claims here since 2014. 3 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Monmouth?

High

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Monmouth to be higher than in 79% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding.

Inland flooding45%Drought12%Tornadoes11%Hail10%Cold waves10%Strong wind9%Everything else3%

By hazard

What Monmouth faces

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

Inland flooding

45% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 86% of U.S. places

Recorded about once a year in the area

Drought

12% of expected damage

Recorded about 11 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

11% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 95% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 5 years in the area

Hail

10% of expected damage

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

Recorded about 4 times a year in the area

Cold waves

10% of expected damage

Well below average · higher than 21% of U.S. places

Recorded about 7 times a year in the area

Strong wind

9% of expected damage

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

Recorded about 6 times a year in the area

Lower here

HurricanesIce 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 Monmouth flood?

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

3paid claims since 2014

$67Kpaid to owners

0homes flooded more than once

20142026

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Jackson County.

Disasters that hit Monmouth

3 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into MonmouthDeclared for Jackson County only

2010

Severe Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes

5 households applied for aid $90K aid approved

2008

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding

1 household applied for aid $5K aid approved

2002

Severe Storms and Flooding

$47K to the City of Monmouth for repairs

Jackson County has had 19 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. Monmouth 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 Monmouth’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the City of Monmouth. 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.