Newberry’s biggest natural hazard is inland flooding
Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Newberry comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is moderate for a U.S. community. 2 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.
What stands out about Newberry’s weather risks
Read from FEMA’s records below. The page puts what stands out first.
Does Newberry flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Newberry. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Newberry isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Greene County.How exposed is Newberry?
FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings here to be higher than in 55% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding.
Rated higher than 1,551 of the 1,977 Indiana towns we cover.
Newberry is smaller than a census tract, so it shares the figures of the tract around its center.
What Newberry faces
Each hazard’s share of the damage FEMA expects here, and how it compares with the rest of the country.
Inland flooding
Tornadoes
Earthquakes
Strong wind
2 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Newberry
Disasters that paid out in Newberry itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Newberry) and its biggest flood years.
- 2008Severe Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes3 households applied for aid$1K aid approved
- 2005Severe Winter Storms and Flooding1 household applied for aid$11K aid approved$7K to the Town of Newberry for repairs
Greene County has had 15 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often severe storms and floods.
Old photos of Newberry after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Newberry archive →Get ready for what Newberry actually faces
A short kit for its top hazards, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- 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.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- 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.
Disasters here can come any time of year
The month each of Greene County’s 15 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 Newberry’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Town of Newberry.
- 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 Newberry.
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.