Amherst’s biggest natural hazard is hail
Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Amherst comes from hail, and overall the risk is high for a U.S. community. 3 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.
What stands out about Amherst’s weather risks
Read from FEMA’s records below. The page puts what stands out first.
Does Amherst flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Amherst. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Amherst isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Buffalo County.How exposed is Amherst?
FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings here to be higher than in 79% of U.S. communities, mostly from hail and strong winds.
Rated higher than 724 of the 913 Nebraska towns we cover.
Amherst is smaller than a census tract, so it shares the figures of the tract around its center.
What Amherst faces
Each hazard’s share of the damage FEMA expects here, and how it compares with the rest of the country.
Hail
Strong wind
Inland flooding
Drought
Tornadoes
3 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Amherst
Disasters that paid out in Amherst itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Village of Amherst) and its biggest flood years.
- 2019Severe Winter Storm, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding2 households applied for aid
- 2008Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding6 households applied for aid$1K aid approved
- 2006Severe Winter Storms$15K to the Village of Amherst for repairs
Buffalo County has had 17 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often severe storms and floods.
Old photos of Amherst after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Amherst archive →Get ready for what Amherst actually faces
A short kit for its top hazards, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- Park in a garage or under cover when storms are forecast.
- Stay away from windows while it falls.
- Photograph roof and car damage for your insurer.
- Trim dead limbs over the house and driveway.
- Tie down trash cans and outdoor furniture.
- Stay clear of downed lines and call the utility.
- Turn around at flooded roads: a foot of moving water can carry off a car.
- Flood insurance usually takes 30 days to start, so buy it before the forecast.
- Keep papers and medicines up high, in a grab-and-go bag.
- Look up the address on FEMA’s flood map.
- Ask the seller or landlord whether it has ever flooded, and what flood insurance costs there.
- Get a flood insurance quote early: policies usually start 30 days after you buy.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Most disasters here begin in May–June
The month each of Buffalo County’s 17 declared disasters began, since 1953.
What these numbers can and can’t tell you
- An average, not a forecast. FEMA’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 there, so a big city isn’t rated riskier just for having more buildings.
- Money that reached town. Flood claims are matched to Amherst’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Village of Amherst.
- It follows property value. FEMA’s model weighs damage to buildings, so a place that recently lost many homes can rate lower than it feels.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Amherst.
Your answer becomes a post in Town Square.
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. Weather alerts: National Weather Service. Preparedness tips: Ready.gov. An average of past damage, not a forecast.