Photo: Brian Stansberry · CC BY 4.0Storms, floods and disasters in Fyffe
Fyffe isn’t graded for hazard risk: FEMA’s tract figures aren’t matched to Fyffe yet.
What Fyffe 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
Earthquakes
Tornadoes
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 Fyffe flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Fyffe. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Fyffe isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: DeKalb County.4 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Fyffe
Disasters that paid out in Fyffe itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Fyffe), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2011Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding313 households applied for aid$629K aid approved$17K to the Town of Fyffe for repairs
- 2010Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding6 households applied for aid$250 aid approved
- 2004Hurricane Ivan3 households applied for aid$2K aid approved
- 2003Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding2 households applied for aid$970 aid approved$2K to the Town of Fyffe for repairs
DeKalb County has had 30 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then hurricanes and tropical storms.
Also 1 FEMA wildfire suppression grant (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in DeKalb County, 1999–1999.
Old photos of Fyffe after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Fyffe archive →Fyffe and its neighbors
How expected damage per building compares across the town line. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shiloh | — | 383 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
Hazard risk = FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade; the map is shaded by fifths of the same scale. Flood claims = paid federal flood insurance claims on record.
Get ready for what Fyffe 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.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- 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.
- 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 Fyffe
Is Fyffe 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 DeKalb County, 7% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.2% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Fyffe?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Fyffe’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 Fyffe?
By FEMA money that reached Fyffe, Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding (2011): 313 households applied for aid, $629K approved, and $17K to the Town of Fyffe for repairs.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Fyffe.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Fyffe’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.