Natural hazards · South Cedar

South Cedar, NE natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in South Cedar comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is high for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 25 claims here since 1978.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is South Cedar?

High

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in South Cedar to be higher than in 66% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and tornadoes.

Inland flooding38%Tornadoes18%Hail17%Drought12%Strong wind9%Everything else8%

By hazard

What South Cedar faces

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

Inland flooding

38% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 66% of U.S. places

Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

18% of expected damage

Well above average · among the top 1% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 8 years in the area

Hail

17% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 94% of U.S. places

Recorded about 7 times a year in the area

Drought

12% of expected damage

Recorded about 32 times a year in the area

Strong wind

9% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 97% of U.S. places

Recorded about 4 times a year in the area

Lower here

Ice stormsWinter weatherCold wavesHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesLightning

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 South Cedar flood?

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

25paid claims since 1978

$394Kpaid to owners

0homes flooded more than once

19782026

Biggest named events

March 2019 Midwest Flooding: 9 claims, $303K

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Saunders County.

Disasters that hit South Cedar

Federal disasters declared here

None of the disasters declared for Saunders County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching South Cedar itself in FEMA’s records.

Brought FEMA money into South CedarDeclared for Saunders County only

Saunders County has had 26 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often severe storms and floods.

Around South Cedar

South Cedar and the towns around it

Very lowLowModerateHighVery high

South Cedarmostly inland floodingHigh

Centermostly inland floodingHigh

North Cedarmostly inland floodingHigh

Pohoccomostly inland floodingHigh

Douglasmostly inland floodingHigh

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. South Cedar covers 1 census tract, combined by population.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to South Cedar’s own flood-insurance community (here, the census tracts inside it); household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Township of South Cedar. 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 South Cedar total about $2.6M 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.