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Carter-Swain HouseCarter-Swain House · Photo: rossograph · CC BY-SA 4.0
–Not graded
Natural hazards in Barnardsville · FEMA

Storms, floods and disasters in Barnardsville

Barnardsville isn’t graded for hazard risk: Barnardsville has 445 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more.

Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
4
of 16 declared for Buncombe County
By hazard

What Barnardsville 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

83%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 6% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area

Landslides

11%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Tornadoes Earthquakes Wildfire Ice storms Hurricanes Hail Strong wind Lightning Winter storms Cold waves
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingHeat wavesAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 14% of Barnardsville’s expected losses. Cold waves do little damage to buildings (0.0%), 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.
Flood insurance claims

Does Barnardsville flood? No paid flood claims on record

FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Barnardsville. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.

of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Buncombe County.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
13flood-prone properties bought out and cleared
2homes raised above flood level
Disasters

4 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Barnardsville

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

  1. 2024Tropical Storm Helene814 households applied for aid$4.5M aid approved
  2. 2021Remnants of Tropical Storm Fred30 households applied for aid$84K aid approved
  3. 2004Hurricane Ivan48 households applied for aid$105K aid approved
  4. 2004Tropical Storm Frances7 households applied for aid$12K aid approved
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in BarnardsvilleBuncombe County only

Buncombe County has had 16 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.

Also 1 FEMA wildfire suppression grant (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Buncombe County, 2016–2016.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Barnardsville archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Barnardsville 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 ↗
Landslides
  • Watch for new cracks, tilting trees or suddenly muddy streams after heavy rain.
  • Stay off steep slopes in a downpour.
  • Leave if you hear rumbling upslope.
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 Barnardsville

Is Barnardsville 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 Buncombe County, 41% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.0% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Barnardsville?

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

By FEMA money that reached Barnardsville, Tropical Storm Helene (2024): 814 households applied for aid, $4.5M approved.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Barnardsville.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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