San Leon’s biggest natural hazard is cold waves
Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in San Leon comes from cold waves, and overall the risk is moderate for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 1,705 claims here since 1979. 7 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.
What stands out about San Leon’s weather risks
Read from FEMA’s records below. The page puts what stands out first.
Does San Leon flood? Yes: 1,705 flood claims since 1979
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in San Leon, from FEMA’s records.
- Hurricane Ike880 claims · $65.6M
- Hurricane Alicia261 claims · $2.1M
- Hurricane Jerry81 claims · $677K
San Leon isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Galveston County.What San Leon faces
Each hazard’s share of the damage FEMA expects here, and how it compares with the rest of the country.
Cold waves
Hurricanes
Inland flooding
Tornadoes
7 federal disasters brought FEMA money to San Leon
Disasters that paid out in San Leon itself (aid to households or repair grants to San Leon) and its biggest flood years.
- 2024Hurricane Beryl966 households applied for aid$1.3M aid approved8 flood claims paid that year
- 2021Severe Winter Storms176 households applied for aid$182K aid approved8 flood claims paid that year
- 2017Hurricane Harvey593 households applied for aid$551K aid approved33 flood claims paid that year
- 2015Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding1 household applied for aid13 flood claims paid that year
- 2008Hurricane Ike2,504 households applied for aid$20.4M aid approved883 flood claims paid that year
- 2005Hurricane Rita871 households applied for aid$663K aid approved
Show all 9
- 2003Hurricane Claudette13 households applied for aid$34K aid approved28 flood claims paid that year
- 1989147 flood claims paidOne of the three biggest flood years on record
- 1983282 flood claims paidOne of the three biggest flood years on record
Galveston County has had 25 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often hurricanes and floods.
Old photos of San Leon after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the San Leon archive →How exposed is San Leon?
FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings here to be higher than in 57% of U.S. communities, mostly from cold waves and hurricanes.
Rated higher than 1,206 of the 1,859 Texas towns we cover.
San Leon covers 1 census tract, combined by population.
Get ready for what San Leon 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.
- The season runs June through November and peaks from mid-August to mid-October.
- Bring in porch furniture and anything the wind can throw.
- Fill the gas tank and charge phones before the storm arrives.
- 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.
San Leon and its neighbors
How storm and flood risk compares across the town line. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Rating | Mostly | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Leon | Moderate | cold waves | 1,705 |
| Texas City | Moderate | cold waves | 2,751 |
Rating = expected yearly storm and flood damage as a share of what’s there, vs. U.S. communities. Flood claims = paid federal flood insurance claims on record.
Most disasters here begin in July–September
The month each of Galveston County’s 25 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 San Leon’s own flood-insurance community (here, the census tracts inside it); household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to San Leon.
- 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 San Leon, expected losses total about $2.7M a year, counting buildings, people and crops.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in San Leon.
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.