Natural hazards · Amherst

Amherst, WI natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Amherst comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is very low for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 1979. 1 federal disaster brought FEMA money into town.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Amherst?

Very low

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Amherst to be higher than in 13% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and cold waves.

Inland flooding37%Cold waves32%Tornadoes15%Hail6%Strong wind5%Everything else5%

By hazard

What Amherst faces

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

Inland flooding

37% of expected damage

Well below average · higher than 21% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 2 years in the area

Cold waves

32% of expected damage

Below average · higher than 26% of U.S. places

Recorded about 8 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

15% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 77% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 23 years in the area

Hail

6% of expected damage

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

Recorded about 3 times a year in the area

Strong wind

5% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 74% of U.S. places

Recorded about 3 times a year in the area

Lower here

Ice stormsWinter weatherHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesLightning

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingHurricanesDroughtAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic 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 Amherst flood?

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

1paid claims since 1979

$580paid to owners

0homes flooded more than once

19792026

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Portage County.

Disasters that hit Amherst

1 federal disaster brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into AmherstDeclared for Portage County only

2019

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

$35K to the Village of Amherst for repairs

Portage County has had 10 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often severe storms and floods.

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