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Natural hazards · Sylvan Lake

Sylvan Lake, MI natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Sylvan Lake comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is low for a U.S. community. 2 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

How exposed is Sylvan Lake?

30
Low
vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Sylvan Lake to be higher than in 30% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and tornadoes.

Inland flooding56%Tornadoes23%Cold waves13%Everything else9%
By hazard

What Sylvan Lake faces

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

Inland flooding

56% of expected damage
Below average · higher than 47% of U.S. places
Recorded about once a year in the area

Tornadoes

23% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 86% of U.S. places

Cold waves

13% of expected damage
Above average · higher than 52% of U.S. places
Recorded about 3 times a year in the area

Lower here

HurricanesHailIce stormsWinter weatherHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesStrong 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 Sylvan Lake flood?

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

of homes in flood zones
are insured
of all homes
are insured
No community discount. Sylvan Lake isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Oakland County.
Disasters that hit Sylvan Lake

2 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into Sylvan LakeDeclared for Oakland County only
2023

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding

5 households applied for aid $7K aid approved
2004

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding

1 household applied for aid $901 aid approved
Oakland County has had 12 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often severe storms and floods.
Around Sylvan Lake

Sylvan Lake and the towns around it

West Bloomfield: Very low, mostly inland floodingPontiac: Very low, mostly inland floodingWaterford: Very low, mostly inland floodingOrchard Lake Village: Very low, mostly inland floodingCommerce: Very low, mostly inland floodingBloomfield: Very low, mostly inland floodingKeego Harbor: Low, mostly inland floodingFarmington Hills: Very low, mostly inland floodingAuburn Hills: Very low, mostly inland floodingLake Angelus: Very low, mostly inland floodingIndependence: Very low, mostly inland floodingWhite Lake: Very low, mostly inland floodingOrion: Very low, mostly inland floodingSylvan Lake: Low, mostly inland flooding Sylvan LakeWest BloomfieldPontiacWaterford
Very lowLowModerateHighVery high
Sylvan Lakemostly inland floodingLow
Waterfordmostly inland floodingVery low
West Bloomfieldmostly inland floodingVery low
Pontiacmostly 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. Sylvan Lake covers 1 census tract, combined by population.
Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Sylvan Lake’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the City of Sylvan Lake. 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 Sylvan Lake total about $592K 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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