Timken’s biggest natural hazard is inland flooding
Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Timken comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is moderate for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 1993. 1 federal disaster brought FEMA money into town.
What stands out about Timken’s weather risks
Read from FEMA’s records below. The page puts what stands out first.
Does Timken flood? Rarely: 1 flood claim since 1993
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Timken, from FEMA’s records.
- The Midwest Flooding1 claim · $8K
Timken isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Rush County.How exposed is Timken?
FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings here to be higher than in 57% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and tornadoes.
Calmer than 1,157 of the 1,995 Kansas towns we cover.
Timken is smaller than a census tract, so it shares the figures of the tract around its center.
What Timken faces
Each hazard’s share of the damage FEMA expects here, and how it compares with the rest of the country.
Inland flooding
Tornadoes
Drought
Hail
Cold waves
Strong wind
1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Timken
Disasters that paid out in Timken itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Timken) and its biggest flood years.
- 2007Severe Winter Storms$5K to the City of Timken for repairs
Rush County has had 19 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often severe storms and winter storms.
Old photos of Timken after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Timken archive →Get ready for what Timken 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.
- On a well? Know how deep it is and watch for sputtering.
- Follow the town’s watering limits.
- Fix drips: they add up.
- 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.
Most disasters here begin in April–June
The month each of Rush County’s 19 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 Timken’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the City of Timken.
- 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 Timken.
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.