Natural hazards · St. Matthews

St. Matthews, KY natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in St. Matthews comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is high for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 91 claims here since 1978.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is St. Matthews?

High

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in St. Matthews to be higher than in 65% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and tornadoes.

Inland flooding63%Tornadoes21%Earthquakes10%Everything else6%

By hazard

What St. Matthews faces

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

Inland flooding

63% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 81% of U.S. places

Recorded about 4 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

21% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 79% of U.S. places

Earthquakes

10% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 77% of U.S. places

Lower here

HurricanesHailIce stormsWinter weatherCold wavesHeat wavesWildfireLandslidesStrong windLightning

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingDroughtAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic 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 St. Matthews flood?

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

91paid claims since 1978

$2.9Mpaid to owners

0homes flooded more than once

19782026

Biggest named events

Not a named storm: 1 claim, $4K

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Jefferson County.

Disasters that hit St. Matthews

Federal disasters declared here

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

Brought FEMA money into St. MatthewsDeclared for Jefferson County only

Jefferson County has had 20 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often severe storms and floods.

Around St. Matthews

St. Matthews and the towns around it

Very lowLowModerateHighVery high

St. Matthewsmostly inland floodingHigh

Woodlawn Parkmostly inland floodingHigh

Windy Hillsmostly inland floodingHigh

Lyndonmostly inland floodingHigh

Maryhill Estatesmostly inland floodingHigh

Graymoor-Devondalemostly inland floodingModerate

Bellewoodmostly inland floodingModerate

Brownsboro Villagemostly inland floodingModerate

Beechwood Villagemostly inland floodingModerate

Norwoodmostly 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. St. Matthews covers 4 census tracts, combined by population.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to St. Matthews’s own flood-insurance community (here, the census tracts inside it); household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the City of St. Matthews. 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 St. Matthews total about $7.3M 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.