Natural hazards · Midland

Midland, WA natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Midland comes from earthquakes, and overall the risk is high for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 2 claims here since 2007.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Midland?

High

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Midland to be higher than in 69% of U.S. communities, mostly from earthquakes and inland flooding.

Earthquakes73%Inland flooding22%Everything else5%

By hazard

What Midland faces

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

Earthquakes

73% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 92% of U.S. places

Inland flooding

22% of expected damage

Below average · higher than 28% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 9 years in the area

Lower here

TornadoesHailIce stormsWinter weatherHeat wavesWildfireLandslidesStrong windLightningVolcanic activity

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingHurricanesCold wavesDroughtAvalanchesTsunamis

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 Midland flood?

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

2paid claims since 2007

$41Kpaid to owners

0homes flooded more than once

20072026

Biggest named events

Winter storm: 1 claim, $18K

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Pierce County.

Disasters that hit Midland

Federal disasters declared here

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

Brought FEMA money into MidlandDeclared for Pierce County only

Pierce County has had 22 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often floods and severe storms.

Around Midland

Midland and the towns around it

Very lowLowModerateHighVery high

Wallermostly earthquakesVery high

Tacomamostly earthquakesHigh

Parklandmostly earthquakesHigh

Midlandmostly earthquakesHigh

Summitmostly earthquakesHigh

Clover Creekmostly earthquakesHigh

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. Midland covers 2 census tracts, combined by population.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Midland’s own flood-insurance community (here, the census tracts inside it); household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to Midland. 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 Midland total about $3.3M 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.