Natural hazards · West Harrison

West Harrison, IN natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in West Harrison comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is very high for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 5 claims here since 1998. 4 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is West Harrison?

Very high

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in West Harrison to be higher than in 82% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding.

Inland flooding73%Tornadoes13%Cold waves6%Everything else9%

By hazard

What West Harrison faces

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

Inland flooding

73% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 94% of U.S. places

Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

13% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 97% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 83 years in the area

Cold waves

6% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 53% of U.S. places

Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Lower here

HurricanesHailIce stormsWinter weatherHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesStrong windLightningDrought

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 West Harrison flood?

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

5paid claims since 1998

$29Kpaid to owners

2homes flooded more than once

19982026

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. West Harrison isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Dearborn County.

Disasters that hit West Harrison

4 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into West HarrisonDeclared for Dearborn County only

2026

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

31 households applied for aid $310K aid approved

2008

Severe Storms and Flooding

15 households applied for aid $4K aid approved

2008

Severe Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes

1 household applied for aid

2005

Severe Winter Storms and Flooding

1 household applied for aid $366 aid approved

Dearborn County has had 19 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often severe storms and floods.

Around West Harrison

West Harrison and the towns around it

Very lowLowModerateHighVery high

West Harrisonmostly inland floodingVery high

Harrisonmostly inland floodingHigh

Harrisonmostly inland floodingModerate

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. West Harrison 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 West Harrison’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Town of West Harrison. 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.