Natural hazards · Laurel

Laurel, NE natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Laurel comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is high 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 Laurel?

High

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Laurel to be higher than in 61% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and drought.

Inland flooding36%Drought24%Tornadoes13%Hail12%Everything else16%

By hazard

What Laurel faces

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

Inland flooding

36% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 71% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 2 years in the area

Drought

24% of expected damage

Recorded about 46 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

13% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 98% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 3 years in the area

Hail

12% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 84% of U.S. places

Recorded about 6 times a year in the area

Lower here

Ice stormsWinter weatherCold wavesHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesStrong windLightning

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 Laurel flood?

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

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Cedar County.

Disasters that hit Laurel

3 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into LaurelDeclared for Cedar County only

2019

Severe Winter Storm, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding

$55K to the City of Laurel for repairs

2014

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding

$320K to the City of Laurel for repairs

2009

Severe Winter Storms and Snowstorm

$13K to the City of Laurel for repairs

Cedar County has had 13 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often severe storms and floods.

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. Laurel 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 Laurel’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the City of Laurel. 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.