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Natural hazards · Ann Arbor

Ann Arbor, MI natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Ann Arbor comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is very low for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 34 claims here since 1980. 5 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

How exposed is Ann Arbor?

15
Very low
vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Ann Arbor to be higher than in 15% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and tornadoes.

Inland flooding45%Tornadoes25%Cold waves13%Strong wind7%Everything else10%
By hazard

What Ann Arbor faces

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

Inland flooding

45% of expected damage
Well below average · higher than 21% of U.S. places
Recorded about once a year in the area

Tornadoes

25% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 83% of U.S. places

Cold waves

13% of expected damage
Above average · higher than 73% of U.S. places
Recorded about 3 times a year in the area

Strong wind

7% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 92% of U.S. places
Recorded about 6 times a year in the area

Lower here

HurricanesHailIce stormsWinter weatherHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesLightning

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 Ann Arbor flood?

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

34paid claims since 1980
$782Kpaid to owners
4homes flooded more than once
19802026

Homes that flooded again and again

■ FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (1) ■ flooded 2+ times

of homes in flood zones
are insured
of all homes
are insured
🏷️ 20% off flood insurance. Ann Arbor is in FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 6) for its flood-proofing work.
Insurance rates: Washtenaw County.

What’s been done with FEMA grants

4flood-prone properties bought out and cleared
Disasters that hit Ann Arbor

5 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

Disasters the President declared that paid out in Ann Arbor itself: aid to households, or repair grants to the City of Ann Arbor.

Brought FEMA money into Ann ArborDeclared for Washtenaw County only
2026

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding

31 households applied for aid $28K aid approved
2021

Severe Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes

309 households applied for aid $154K aid approved
2004

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding

27 households applied for aid $25K aid approved
2000

Snow

$81K to the City of Ann Arbor for repairs
1999

Mi - Severe Weather 1/2 /99

$66K to the City of Ann Arbor for repairs
Washtenaw County has had 9 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often winter storms and floods.
Around Ann Arbor

Ann Arbor and the towns around it

Ann Arbor: Very low, mostly inland floodingScio: Very low, mostly inland floodingPittsfield: Very low, mostly inland floodingBarton Hills: Very low, mostly inland floodingSuperior: Low, mostly inland floodingNorthfield: Low, mostly inland floodingDexter: Very low, mostly inland floodingWebster: Low, mostly inland floodingLima: Very low, mostly inland floodingLodi: Very low, mostly inland floodingSaline: Very low, mostly inland floodingYpsilanti: Low, mostly inland floodingAnn Arbor: Very low, mostly inland flooding Ann ArborAnn ArborScioPittsfieldBarton Hills
Very lowLowModerateHighVery high
Sciomostly inland floodingVery low
Ann Arbormostly inland floodingVery low
Ann Arbormostly inland floodingVery low
Pittsfieldmostly inland floodingVery low
Barton Hillsmostly inland floodingVery low
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. Ann Arbor covers 34 census tracts, combined by population.
Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Ann Arbor’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the City of Ann Arbor. 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 Ann Arbor total about $26.5M 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.

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/18 · 2025-01-01
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