TownTapestry
Sign inJoin
SylvanGood afternoon
Natural hazards · Sylvan

Sylvan, WI natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Sylvan comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is high for a U.S. community. 5 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

How exposed is Sylvan?

74
High
vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Sylvan to be higher than in 74% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding.

Inland flooding64%Cold waves13%Tornadoes7%Hail7%Everything else10%
By hazard

What Sylvan faces

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

Inland flooding

64% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 88% of U.S. places
Recorded about once a year in the area

Cold waves

13% of expected damage
Below average · higher than 34% of U.S. places
Recorded about 6 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

7% of expected damage
Above average · higher than 74% of U.S. places
Recorded about once every 7 years in the area

Hail

7% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 93% of U.S. places
Recorded about 4 times a year in the area

Lower here

HurricanesIce 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 Sylvan flood?

FEMA's records show no paid flood insurance claims in Sylvan.

of homes in flood zones
are insured
of all homes
are insured
No community discount. Sylvan isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Richland County.
Disasters that hit Sylvan

5 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into SylvanDeclared for Richland County only
2018

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

$17K to the Town of Sylvan for repairs
2016

Severe Storms, Flooding, and Mudslides

$45K to the Town of Sylvan for repairs
2008

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding

$27K to the Town of Sylvan for repairs
2007

Severe Storms and Flooding

$60K to the Town of Sylvan for repairs
2000

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding

$177K to the Town of Sylvan for repairs
Richland County has had 17 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often severe storms and floods.
Around Sylvan

Sylvan and the towns around it

Marshall: High, mostly inland floodingForest: High, mostly inland floodingAkan: High, mostly inland floodingKickapoo: High, mostly inland floodingClayton: Low, mostly inland floodingDayton: High, mostly inland floodingBloom: High, mostly inland floodingRockbridge: High, mostly inland floodingViola: High, mostly inland floodingStark: High, mostly inland floodingLiberty: High, mostly inland floodingRichwood: High, mostly inland floodingFranklin: High, mostly inland floodingViroqua: Very low, mostly cold wavesUtica: Low, mostly inland floodingGays Mills: Low, mostly inland floodingBell Center: Low, mostly inland floodingHaney: Low, mostly inland floodingScott: Low, mostly inland floodingSylvan: High, mostly inland flooding SylvanMarshallForestAkanKickapooClayton
Very lowLowModerateHighVery high
Sylvanmostly inland floodingHigh
Marshallmostly inland floodingHigh
Akanmostly inland floodingHigh
Forestmostly inland floodingHigh
Kickapoomostly inland floodingHigh
Claytonmostly inland floodingLow
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. Sylvan 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 Sylvan’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Town of Sylvan. 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.

The door’s open

Where to, neighbor?

You’re in Sylvan, WIRichland CountyView boundary

Nearby

All towns & citiesExplore the map

Local begins with a boundary.

See what belongs to your selected town.

Loading boundary…

Sylvan is your selected town. The feed includes posts assigned to this town, not a distance radius or ZIP code.

Neighborhoods narrow the feed further, while townwide announcements, events, and issues remain visible.

Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/15 · 2025-01-01
Open detailed map