Natural hazards · Center

Center, KS natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Center comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is moderate for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 2 claims here since 1993.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Center?

Moderate

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Center to be higher than in 48% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and tornadoes.

Inland flooding40%Tornadoes17%Drought12%Hail7%Wildfire6%Strong wind5%Everything else13%

By hazard

What Center faces

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

Inland flooding

40% of expected damage

Below average · higher than 48% of U.S. places

Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

17% of expected damage

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

Recorded about once every 3 years in the area

Drought

12% of expected damage

Recorded about 19 times a year in the area

Hail

7% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 90% of U.S. places

Recorded about 9 times a year in the area

Wildfire

6% of expected damage

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

Strong wind

5% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 87% of U.S. places

Recorded about 7 times a year in the area

Lower here

Ice stormsWinter weatherCold wavesHeat wavesEarthquakesLandslidesLightning

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingHurricanesAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic 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 Center flood?

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

2paid claims since 1993

$20Kpaid to owners

0homes flooded more than once

19932026

Biggest named events

Midwest Flooding: 1 claim, $4K

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Atchison County.

Disasters that hit Center

Federal disasters declared here

None of the disasters declared for Atchison County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Center itself in FEMA’s records.

Brought FEMA money into CenterDeclared for Atchison County only

Atchison County has had 16 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often severe storms and floods.

Around Center

Center and the towns around it

Very lowLowModerateHighVery high

Nortonmostly inland floodingModerate

Centermostly inland floodingModerate

Mount Pleasantmostly inland floodingModerate

Lancastermostly inland floodingModerate

Bentonmostly 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. Center covers 1 census tract, combined by population.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Center’s own flood-insurance community (here, the census tracts inside it); household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Township of Center. FEMA’s model follows property values, so a place that recently lost many homes can rate lower than it feels.

FEMA’s expected losses across Center total about $3.5M a year, counting buildings, people and crops.

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.