Natural hazards · Fargo

Fargo, KS natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Fargo comes from drought, and overall the risk is high for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 1985.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Fargo?

High

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Fargo to be higher than in 63% of U.S. communities, mostly from drought.

Drought62%Wildfire13%Cold waves7%Tornadoes6%Inland flooding5%Everything else8%

By hazard

What Fargo faces

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

Drought

62% of expected damage

Recorded about 123 times a year in the area

Wildfire

13% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 98% of U.S. places

Cold waves

7% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 55% of U.S. places

Recorded about 3 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

6% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 91% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 2 years in the area

Inland flooding

5% of expected damage

Well below average · higher than 3% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 3 years in the area

Lower here

HailIce stormsWinter weatherHeat wavesEarthquakesLandslidesStrong windLightning

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 Fargo flood?

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

1paid claims since 1985

$17Kpaid to owners

0homes flooded more than once

19852026

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Seward County.

Disasters that hit Fargo

Federal disasters declared here

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

Brought FEMA money into FargoDeclared for Seward County only

Seward County has had 10 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often severe storms and winter storms.

Around Fargo

Fargo and the towns around it

Very lowLowModerateHighVery high

Cimarronmostly droughtHigh

Fargomostly droughtHigh

Sewardmostly droughtHigh

Liberalmostly tornadoesLow

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. Fargo covers 1 census tract, combined by population.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Fargo’s own flood-insurance community (here, the census tracts inside it); household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Township of Fargo. 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 Fargo total about $5.5M 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.