Photo: User:Dincher · CC BY-SA 3.0On FEMA’s figures, Bladenboro faces more hazard damage per building than 93% of U.S. towns, mostly from hurricanes
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bladenboro gets a D for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 93% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is hurricanes (53%), then river and rain flooding (35%). Flood insurance has paid 36 claims here since 1996.
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
What stands out about Bladenboro’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Bladenboro faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
Hurricanes
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.
What’s behind Bladenboro’s grade
Hurricanes are 53% of the building damage FEMA expects in Bladenboro, and Bladenboro’s rate of hurricanes damage is in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts. Strong wind adds 4%, at a rate in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts.
D higher expected damage per building than 93% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Bladenboro’s residents live in 2 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $2.0M a year in losses across Bladenboro: $1.6M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Bladenboro flood? Sometimes: 36 flood claims since 1996
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Bladenboro, from FEMA’s records: 38.0 per 1,000 homes, more than 90% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Hurricane Florence14 claims · $947K
- Hurricane Matthew7 claims · $450K
- Hurricane Debby4 claims · $251K
Bladenboro isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Bladen County.7 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Bladenboro
Disasters that paid out in Bladenboro itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Bladenboro), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2018Hurricane Florence676 households applied for aid$498K aid approved$61K to the Town of Bladenboro for repairs14 flood claims paid for it, $947K
- 2016Hurricane Matthew651 households applied for aid$600K aid approved$149K to the Town of Bladenboro for repairs7 flood claims paid for it, $450K
- 2011Hurricane Irene14 households applied for aid$5K aid approved
- 2011Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding133 households applied for aid$149K aid approved
- 2004Tropical Storm Frances219 households applied for aid$235K aid approved
- 2003Hurricane Isabel290 households applied for aid$200K aid approved
Show all 7
- 1999Hurricane Floyd Major Disaster Declarations$119K to the Town of Bladenboro for repairs4 flood claims paid for it, $127K
Bladen County has had 20 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, then severe 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 Bladen County, 2011–2011.
Old photos of Bladenboro after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Bladenboro archive →Get ready for what Bladenboro faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- 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.
- 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 Bladenboro
Is Bladenboro at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bladenboro has higher expected damage per building than 93% of U.S. towns: D for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is hurricanes (53%) and river and rain flooding (35%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Bladenboro flood?
Flood insurance has paid 36 claims in Bladenboro since 1996, $1.8M in all, or 38.0 per 1,000 homes, more than 90% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 8 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Hurricane Florence (14).
Is Bladenboro 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 Bladen County, 10% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.9% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Bladenboro?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Bladenboro’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 Bladenboro?
By FEMA money that reached Bladenboro, Hurricane Matthew (2016): 651 households applied for aid, $600K approved, and $149K to the Town of Bladenboro for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Florence: 14 paid, $947K.
Is Bladenboro at risk from hurricanes?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (53%), and Bladenboro’s rate for it is in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Bladenboro.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Bladenboro’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.