Photo: Kubigula · CC BY-SA 3.0Storms, floods and disasters in Bakersville
Bakersville isn’t graded for hazard risk: Bakersville has 747 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more. Flood insurance has paid 19 claims here since 1991.
What Bakersville 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
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 Bakersville flood? Sometimes: 19 flood claims since 1991
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Bakersville, from FEMA’s records.
- Hurricane Helene7 claims · $1.1M
Bakersville isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Mitchell County.4 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Bakersville
Disasters that paid out in Bakersville itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Bakersville), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2024Tropical Storm Helene2,112 households applied for aid$8.9M aid approved$354K to the Town of Bakersville for repairs7 flood claims paid for it, $1.1M
- 2013Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides$15K to the Town of Bakersville for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
- 2004Hurricane Ivan156 households applied for aid$165K aid approved
- 2004Tropical Storm Frances34 households applied for aid$62K aid approved
Mitchell County has had 17 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, then winter storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Old photos of Bakersville after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Bakersville archive →Get ready for what Bakersville 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.
- 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 Bakersville
Does Bakersville flood?
Flood insurance has paid 19 claims in Bakersville since 1991, $1.4M in all. 2 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Hurricane Helene (7).
Is Bakersville 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 Mitchell County, 22% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.6% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Bakersville?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Bakersville’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 Bakersville?
By FEMA money that reached Bakersville, Tropical Storm Helene (2024): 2,112 households applied for aid, $8.9M approved, and $354K to the Town of Bakersville for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Helene: 7 paid, $1.1M.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Bakersville.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Bakersville’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.