Natural hazards · Galesburg

Galesburg, MI natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Galesburg comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is very low for a U.S. community. 3 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Galesburg?

Very low

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Galesburg to be higher than in 12% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and tornadoes.

Inland flooding46%Tornadoes24%Hail13%Cold waves7%Strong wind5%Everything else5%

By hazard

What Galesburg faces

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

Inland flooding

46% of expected damage

Well below average · higher than 9% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 2 years in the area

Tornadoes

24% of expected damage

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

Recorded about once every 88 years in the area

Hail

13% of expected damage

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

Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Cold waves

7% of expected damage

Below average · higher than 46% of U.S. places

Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Strong wind

5% of expected damage

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

Recorded about 4 times a year in the area

Lower here

HurricanesIce 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 Galesburg flood?

FEMA's records show no paid flood insurance claims in Galesburg.

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Kalamazoo County.

Disasters that hit Galesburg

3 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into GalesburgDeclared for Kalamazoo County only

2026

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding

6 households applied for aid

2000

Snow

$7K to the City of Galesburg for repairs

1999

Mi - Severe Weather 1/2 /99

$4K to the City of Galesburg for repairs

Kalamazoo County has had 9 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often winter storms and floods.

Around Galesburg

Galesburg and the towns around it

Very lowLowModerateHighVery high

Charlestonmostly inland floodingLow

Comstockmostly inland floodingVery low

Galesburgmostly 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. Galesburg is smaller than a census tract, so it shares the figures of the tract around its center.

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

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.