Natural hazards · Wakarusa

Wakarusa, IN natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Wakarusa comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is very low for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 2018. 4 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Wakarusa?

Very low

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Wakarusa to be higher than in 5% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and cold waves.

Inland flooding43%Cold waves21%Tornadoes18%Strong wind7%Hail6%Everything else7%

By hazard

What Wakarusa faces

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

Inland flooding

43% of expected damage

Well below average · higher than 8% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 3 years in the area

Cold waves

21% of expected damage

Below average · higher than 46% of U.S. places

Recorded about 3 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

18% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 71% of U.S. places

Strong wind

7% of expected damage

Below average · higher than 43% of U.S. places

Recorded about 5 times a year in the area

Hail

6% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 83% of U.S. places

Recorded about 3 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 Wakarusa flood?

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

1paid claims since 2018

$3Kpaid to owners

0homes flooded more than once

20182026

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Elkhart County.

Disasters that hit Wakarusa

4 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into WakarusaDeclared for Elkhart County only

2018

Severe Storms and Flooding

2 households applied for aid

2008

Severe Storms and Flooding

2 households applied for aid $199 aid approved

2000

Snow

$2K to the Town of Wakarusa for repairs

1999

In-Winter Storm 12/23/98

$3K to the Town of Wakarusa for repairs

Elkhart County has had 11 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often winter 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. Wakarusa 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 Wakarusa’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Town of Wakarusa. 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.

Wakarusa, IN natural hazards

How exposed is Wakarusa?

What Wakarusa faces

Inland flooding

Cold waves

Tornadoes

Strong wind

Hail

Lower here

Not a risk here

Does Wakarusa flood?

4 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

Severe Storms and Flooding

Severe Storms and Flooding

Snow

In-Winter Storm 12/23/98

How to read this page

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