Fairfield is calmer than 91% of U.S. communities
Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Fairfield comes from cold waves, and overall the risk is very low for a U.S. community. 2 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.
What stands out about Fairfield’s weather risks
Read from FEMA’s records below. The page puts what stands out first.
How exposed is Fairfield?
FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings here to be higher than in 9% of U.S. communities, mostly from cold waves and inland flooding.
Calmer than 1,767 of the 1,859 Texas towns we cover.
Fairfield covers 1 census tract, combined by population.
What Fairfield faces
Each hazard’s share of the damage FEMA expects here, and how it compares with the rest of the country.
Cold waves
Inland flooding
Tornadoes
Does Fairfield flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Fairfield. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Fairfield isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Freestone County.2 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Fairfield
Disasters that paid out in Fairfield itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Fairfield) and its biggest flood years.
- 2021Severe Winter Storms134 households applied for aid$112K aid approved
- 2013Severe Storms and Flooding$246K to the City of Fairfield for repairs
Freestone County has had 15 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often hurricanes and floods.
Old photos of Fairfield after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Fairfield archive →Get ready for what Fairfield actually faces
A short kit for its top hazards, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- Let faucets drip so pipes don’t freeze.
- Know where your water shutoff is.
- Never heat the house with the oven or a grill.
- 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.
- Pick your spot now: the lowest floor, an inside room, no windows.
- A watch means be ready; a warning means take cover now.
- Keep shoes and a flashlight by the bed.
- 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.
Disasters here can come any time of year
The month each of Freestone County’s 15 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 Fairfield’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the City of Fairfield.
- 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. Across Fairfield, expected losses total about $739K a year, counting buildings, people and crops.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Fairfield.
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. Preparedness tips: Ready.gov. An average of past damage, not a forecast.