Hugh Wilson Hill House · Photo: Jerrye & Roy Klotz, MD · CC BY-SA 4.0Storms, floods and disasters in Carrollton
Carrollton isn’t graded for hazard risk: Carrollton has 781 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more. Flood insurance has paid 4 claims here since 1982.
What Carrollton faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
River and rain flooding
Tornadoes
Earthquakes
Shares are of FEMA’s expected building damage, the measure the grade uses; ranks compare each hazard’s building-damage rate with all 85,154 U.S. census tracts. In FEMA’s terms, river and rain flooding is FEMA’s “Inland Flooding” (rivers and streams overflowing their banks, or rain overwhelming drainage). FEMA defines coastal flooding as high or rising tides and storm surge, so surge damage is counted there. Drought isn’t listed: FEMA counts its losses in crops only.
Does Carrollton flood? Rarely: 4 flood claims since 1982
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Carrollton, from FEMA’s records.
Carrollton isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Pickens County.3 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Carrollton
Disasters that paid out in Carrollton itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Carrollton), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2011Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding39 households applied for aid$4K aid approved
- 2005Hurricane Katrina393 households applied for aid$257K aid approved
- 2004Hurricane Ivan142 households applied for aid$154K aid approved$3K to the Town of Carrollton for repairs
Pickens County has had 16 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, then severe storms.
Old photos of Carrollton after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Carrollton archive →Get ready for what Carrollton faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- Turn around at flooded roads: a foot of moving water can carry off a car.
- Flood insurance usually takes 30 days to start, so buy it before the forecast.
- Keep papers and medicines up high, in a grab-and-go bag.
- Pick your spot now: the lowest floor, an inside room, no windows.
- A watch means be ready; a warning means take cover now.
- Keep shoes and a flashlight by the bed.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- Look up the address on FEMA’s flood map.
- Ask the seller or landlord whether it has ever flooded, and what flood insurance costs there.
- Get a flood insurance quote early: policies usually start 30 days after you buy.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Questions about natural hazards in Carrollton
Does Carrollton flood?
Flood insurance has paid 4 claims in Carrollton since 1982, $7K in all.
Is Carrollton in a flood zone?
Flood zones are drawn street by street, so the answer depends on the address: look it up on FEMA’s flood map. In Pickens County, 15% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.9% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Carrollton?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Carrollton’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
What was the biggest storm in Carrollton?
By FEMA money that reached Carrollton, Hurricane Katrina (2005): 393 households applied for aid, $257K approved.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Carrollton.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Carrollton’s residents lived in the 2020 census; 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. Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. Preparedness tips: Ready.gov. FEMA’s model is an average of expected damage, not a forecast. How hazard risk is graded.