Natural hazards · Van

Van, TX natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Van comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is very low for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 2016. 4 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Van?

Very low

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Van to be higher than in 14% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and tornadoes.

Inland flooding31%Tornadoes20%Cold waves17%Strong wind9%Heat waves9%Hail5%Everything else9%

By hazard

What Van faces

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

Inland flooding

31% of expected damage

Well below average · higher than 11% of U.S. places

Recorded about once a year in the area

Tornadoes

20% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 75% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 26 years in the area

Cold waves

17% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 91% of U.S. places

Recorded about once a year in the area

Strong wind

9% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 91% of U.S. places

Recorded about 4 times a year in the area

Heat waves

9% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 90% of U.S. places

Recorded about 16 times a year in the area

Hail

5% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 86% of U.S. places

Recorded about 5 times a year in the area

Lower here

HurricanesIce stormsWinter weatherWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesLightning

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingDroughtAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic 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 Van flood?

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

1paid claims since 2016

$500paid to owners

0homes flooded more than once

20162026

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Van Zandt County.

Disasters that hit Van

4 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into VanDeclared for Van Zandt County only

2024

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

77 households applied for aid $171K aid approved

2021

Severe Winter Storms

24 households applied for aid $11K aid approved

2015

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds and Flooding

178 households applied for aid $640K aid approved $673K to the City of Van for repairs

2007

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding

1 household applied for aid

Van Zandt County has had 16 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often severe storms and hurricanes.

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