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Natural hazards · Germantown

Germantown, WI natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Germantown comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is very low for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 1997. 6 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

How exposed is Germantown?

14
Very low
vs. U.S. communities

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

Inland flooding42%Cold waves29%Tornadoes16%Everything else13%
By hazard

What Germantown faces

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

Inland flooding

42% of expected damage
Below average · higher than 27% of U.S. places
Recorded about once every 2 years in the area

Cold waves

29% of expected damage
Below average · higher than 34% of U.S. places
Recorded about 5 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

16% of expected damage
Above average · higher than 70% of U.S. places

Lower here

HurricanesHailIce stormsWinter weatherHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesStrong windLightningDrought

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic 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 Germantown flood?

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

1paid claims since 1997
$3Kpaid to owners
0homes flooded more than once
19972026
of homes in flood zones
are insured
of all homes
are insured
No community discount. Germantown isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Washington County.
Disasters that hit Germantown

6 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into GermantownDeclared for Washington County only
2026

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding

82 households applied for aid $140K aid approved
2025

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

307 households applied for aid $1.3M aid approved
2011

Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm

$41K to the Village of Germantown for repairs
2008

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding

21 households applied for aid $37K aid approved $30K to the Village of Germantown for repairs
2008

Record Snow and Near Record Snow

$30K to the Village of Germantown for repairs
2004

Severe Storms and Flooding

2 households applied for aid $5K aid approved
Washington County has had 12 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often floods and severe storms.
Around Germantown

Germantown and the towns around it

Germantown: Very low, mostly inland floodingMenomonee Falls: Very low, mostly inland floodingRichfield: Low, mostly inland floodingMilwaukee: Low, mostly cold wavesJackson: Very low, mostly inland floodingLannon: Low, mostly inland floodingLisbon: Very low, mostly inland floodingButler: Very low, mostly inland floodingBrookfield: Very low, mostly inland floodingBrookfield: Very low, mostly inland floodingPewaukee: Very low, mostly inland floodingPolk: Very low, mostly inland floodingErin: Low, mostly inland floodingWauwatosa: Very low, mostly cold wavesGreenfield: Very low, mostly cold wavesGlendale: Moderate, mostly inland floodingShorewood: Moderate, mostly cold wavesWest Allis: Very low, mostly cold wavesSt. Francis: Very low, mostly cold wavesWest Milwaukee: Very low, mostly cold wavesBrown Deer: Low, mostly inland floodingOak Creek: Very low, mostly cold wavesWhitefish Bay: Moderate, mostly cold wavesCudahy: Very low, mostly cold wavesJackson: Very low, mostly inland floodingCedarburg: Very low, mostly inland floodingTrenton: Very low, mostly inland floodingGermantown: Very low, mostly inland flooding GermantownGermantownMenomonee FallsRichfieldMilwaukeeJackson
Very lowLowModerateHighVery high
Milwaukeemostly cold wavesLow
Richfieldmostly inland floodingLow
Menomonee Fallsmostly inland floodingVery low
Germantownmostly inland floodingVery low
Jacksonmostly inland floodingVery low
Germantownmostly inland floodingVery low
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. Germantown covers 4 census tracts, combined by population.
Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Germantown’s own flood-insurance community (here, the census tracts inside it); household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Village of Germantown. 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 Germantown total about $7.0M 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.

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/18 · 2025-01-01
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