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Natural hazards · Waterville

Waterville, MN natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Waterville comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is high for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 45 claims here since 1983. 6 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

How exposed is Waterville?

72
High
vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Waterville to be higher than in 72% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding.

Inland flooding67%Tornadoes10%Strong wind10%Cold waves6%Everything else8%
By hazard

What Waterville faces

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

Inland flooding

67% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 84% of U.S. places
Recorded about once a year in the area

Tornadoes

10% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 92% of U.S. places
Recorded about once every 19 years in the area

Strong wind

10% of expected damage
Well above average · among the top 1% of U.S. places
Recorded about 4 times a year in the area

Cold waves

6% of expected damage
Below average · higher than 29% of U.S. places
Recorded about 10 times a year in the area

Lower here

HailIce stormsWinter weatherHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesLightningDrought

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingHurricanesAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic 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 Waterville flood?

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

45paid claims since 1983
$1.9Mpaid to owners
2homes flooded more than once
19832026

Biggest named events

  • June Midwest Flooding: 18 claims, $1.4M
  • Severe flooding: 1 claim, $4K

Homes that flooded again and again

■ FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (0) ■ flooded 2+ times

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

What’s been done with FEMA grants

13flood-prone properties bought out and cleared
3homes raised above flood level
Disasters that hit Waterville

6 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into WatervilleDeclared for Le Sueur County only
2024

Severe Storms and Flooding

169 households applied for aid $1.1M aid approved $220K to the City of Waterville for repairs
2019

Severe Winter Storm, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding

$15K to the City of Waterville for repairs
2016

Severe Storms and Flooding

33 households applied for aid $19K aid approved $52K to the City of Waterville for repairs
2014

Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides

$102K to the City of Waterville for repairs
2011

Severe Storms and Flooding

$31K to the City of Waterville for repairs
2001

Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes

$3K to the City of Waterville for repairs
Le Sueur County has had 16 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often floods and severe storms.
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. Waterville 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 Waterville’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the City of Waterville. 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.

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