Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Greensboro

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
Downtown Greensboro AlabamaPhoto: Carol M. Highsmith · Public domain
C+Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Greensboro · FEMA

For tornadoes, Greensboro’s building-damage rate is in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Greensboro gets a C+ for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 58% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (61%), then tornadoes (20%). Flood insurance has paid 3 claims here since 2006.

River and rain flooding 61%Tornadoes 20%Earthquakes 10%

Graded on FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value (NRI v1.20, December 2025), weighted by where residents live; flood claims are shown, not graded. How hazard risk is graded

more than 58%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
C+
in Alabama · higher than 58% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
61% of expected building damage
Flood claims
3
paid since 2006 · $19K
Flooded more than once
1
properties
Disasters paid out here
5
of 20 declared for Hale County
By hazard

What Greensboro 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

61%of expected building damage
About average · higher than 54% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 2 years in the area

Tornadoes

20%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 13 years in the area

Earthquakes

10%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 77% of U.S. census tracts

Hurricanes

5%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 72% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 13 years in the area
Smaller shares here
 Strong wind Hail Ice storms Lightning Wildfire Cold waves Winter storms Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts lightning at 15% of Greensboro’s expected losses. Lightning does little damage to buildings (0.2%), so they aren’t part of the grade.

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.

Flood risk changes street by street. Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.
Hazard risk grade

What’s behind Greensboro’s grade

River and rain flooding is 61% of the building damage FEMA expects in Greensboro, and Greensboro’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 54% of U.S. census tracts. Tornadoes add 20%, at a rate in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Greensboro sits
Greensboro
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C+ higher expected damage per building than 58% of U.S. towns (21,298).

Greensboro’s residents live in 2 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding61%Tornadoes20%Earthquakes10%Everything else10%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.0M a year in losses across Greensboro: $585K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Recent disaster.FEMA’s model looks at expected damage to the buildings standing today. After Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, and Tornadoes in 2021, FEMA took 246 aid registrations from Greensboro addresses (the town has 1,300 homes).
A small-area figure. Greensboro covers 2 census tracts, combined by where residents live. FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims and disasters below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Greensboro flood? Rarely: 3 flood claims since 2006

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Greensboro, from FEMA’s records: 2.3 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 58% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
2006: 1 claim2007: 1 claim2008: 1 claim2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 0 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims200620072008
20062026
3
paid claims since 2006
$19K
paid to owners
1
homes flooded more than once
$6K
average claim
Homes that flooded again and again
FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (0)Flooded 2+ times
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

Greensboro isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Hale County.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
36storm safe rooms built
Disasters

5 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Greensboro

Disasters that paid out in Greensboro itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Greensboro), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.

  1. 2023Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, and Tornadoes52 households applied for aid$260K aid approved
  2. 2021Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, and Tornadoes246 households applied for aid$468K aid approved
  3. 2011Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding269 households applied for aid$381K aid approved$16K to the City of Greensboro for repairs
  4. 2005Hurricane Katrina360 households applied for aid$335K aid approved$31K to the City of Greensboro for repairs
  5. 2004Hurricane Ivan653 households applied for aid$674K aid approved$57K to the City of Greensboro for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in GreensboroHale County only

Hale County has had 20 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, then severe storms.

Were you here?

Old photos of Greensboro after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Greensboro archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Greensboro faces

A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.

When the river rises
  • 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.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Tornado warnings
  • 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.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Earthquakes
  • Drop, cover and hold on.
  • Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
  • Know how to shut off the gas.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Hurricane season
  • The season runs June through November and peaks from mid-August to mid-October.
  • Bring in porch furniture and anything the wind can throw.
  • Fill the gas tank and charge phones before the storm arrives.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Before you buy or rent
  • 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.
When a storm is coming
Forecast and alertsWeather →911, the nearest ERSafety →

Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.

Questions about natural hazards in Greensboro

Is Greensboro at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Greensboro has higher expected damage per building than 58% of U.S. towns: C+ for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (61%) and tornadoes (20%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Does Greensboro flood?

Flood insurance has paid 3 claims in Greensboro since 2006, $19K in all, or 2.3 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 58% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 1 properties have flooded more than once.

Is Greensboro 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 Hale County, 7% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.0% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Greensboro?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Greensboro’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 Greensboro?

By FEMA money that reached Greensboro, Hurricane Ivan (2004): 653 households applied for aid, $674K approved, and $57K to the City of Greensboro for repairs.

Is Greensboro at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (61%), and Greensboro’s rate for it is higher than 54% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Greensboro.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Greensboro’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.