Hondo is calmer than 70% of U.S. communities
Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Hondo comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is low for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 4 claims here since 1997. 4 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.
What stands out about Hondo’s weather risks
Read from FEMA’s records below. The page puts what stands out first.
How exposed is Hondo?
FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings here to be higher than in 30% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding.
Calmer than 1,391 of the 1,859 Texas towns we cover.
Hondo is smaller than a census tract, so it shares the figures of the tract around its center.
What Hondo faces
Each hazard’s share of the damage FEMA expects here, and how it compares with the rest of the country.
Inland flooding
Tornadoes
Drought
Strong wind
Does Hondo flood? Rarely: 4 flood claims since 1997
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Hondo, from FEMA’s records.
- The Early summer storms1 claim · $1K
Hondo isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Medina County.4 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Hondo
Disasters that paid out in Hondo itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Hondo) and its biggest flood years.
- 2021Severe Winter Storms119 households applied for aid$52K aid approved
- 2007Tropical Storm Erin5 households applied for aid$8K aid approved
- 2007Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding19 households applied for aid$38K aid approved$954 to the City of Hondo for repairs
- 2002Severe Storms and Flooding$4K to the City of Hondo for repairs
Medina County has had 15 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often floods and hurricanes.
Old photos of Hondo after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Hondo archive →Get ready for what Hondo actually faces
A short kit for its top hazards, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- 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.
- On a well? Know how deep it is and watch for sputtering.
- Follow the town’s watering limits.
- Fix drips: they add up.
- 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 June–August
The month each of Medina 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 Hondo’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the City of Hondo.
- 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 Hondo.
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.